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\r "

JM^mX

r *'■ i^^'

SUMMER TRAVELLING
IN ICELAND.

3-TTS';

SUMMER TRAVELLING

IN ICELAND;

BEING THE NARRATIVE OF

TWO JOURNEYS ACROSS THE ISUND BY
UNFREQUENTED ROUTES.

WITH

A HISTORICAL INTRODUCTION, AND SOME HINTS AS TO THE ^

EXPENSES AND NECESSARY PREPARATIONS
FOR A TOUR IN ICELAND,

By JOHN COLES, F.R.A.S., F.R.G.S.,

MAP CURATOR AND INSTRUCTOR IN PRACTICAL ASTRONOMY,
ROYAL GEOGRAPHICAL SOCIETY.

WITH A CHAPTER ON ASK/A,
By E. DELMAR MORGAN, F.R.G.S.

CONTAINING ALSO A LITERAL TRANSLATION OF THREE SAGAS,

MAPS AND ILLUSTRATIONS.

LONDON:
JOHN MURRAY, ALBEMARLE STREET.

1882.

The right of TrattslatioH is reservtd.

A- 733117 ^

0,300 ^

-^ ^

LADY PEEK,

IN REMEMBRANCE

-^ WHICH FORMS THE SUBJECT OF THESE PAGES,

THE KINDLY INTEREST WHICH SHE TOOK IN THE JOURNEY

THE AUTHOR.

PREFACE.

-•o^

So few people ever read a preface, that it would almost
appear to be a work of supererogation to write one. I shall
nevertheless venture to do so, as it will, at least, afford an
opportunity of acknowledging my obligations to those who
have kindly assisted me in the production of the present
volume, the foremost among whom are my two travelling
companions, Mr. Cuthbert E. Peek and Mr. E. Delmar
Morgan. By allowing me to refer to his carefully kept
diary, Mr. Peek has rendered me valuable service, and Mr.
Morgan has contributed a chapter on Askja, a volcano
which has only been visited by one other Englishman ; to
Dr. J6n A. Hjaltalin, the Principal of M6«ruvellir Technical
College, my thanks are due for much of the information
contained in the Historical Introduction; as also to Mr.
Eidkr Magntisson, Assistant Librarian of the Cambridge
University Library, for kindly supervising the translation of
the three Sagas which form the Appendix. The plan of the
Great Geysir and Neighbourhood, which was originally
published in the R. G. S. " Proceedings,*' has, by kind per-
mission of the Council, been given in the present volume.

Having thus acknowledged my obligations, it next remains
for me to give some good reason for venturing to intrude on
public notice ; and that I will now endeavour to do. In the

Preface.

first place, though many works on Iceland have been pub-
lished, dealing with its botany, geology, and natural history,
I am only aware of one, of recent date, that would be of any
real service to a tourist, viz., the * Home of the Eddas,* by
Charles G. Warnford Lock ; and this, unfortunately, is out
of print. This being the case, I have, at the request of my
friends, undertaken the production of the present work, in
the hope that a plain narrative of my wanderings in Iceland,
by unfrequented routes, will convey to the mind of the in-
tending traveller a sufficiently clear notion of the kind of
country he is about to visit ; and that the hints, given at the
end of this work, will enable him to count the cost, and
make those preparations which are absolutely necessary, to
avoid loss of time and ensure comfort. I had contemplated
giving, at length, the results of many observations, taken by
my friends and myself, during our journey, but, on second
thoughts, I felt sure that the general reader would not
be interested in them, the more especially as they are
given on my map, which has been carefully compiled from
all reliable sources. Many of the heights have been recal-
culated and given in English feet ; others have been added,
computed from aneroid readings, taken during our journey ;
the readings at the lower stations have been received from
the Danish Meteorological Office, through the courtesy of
Rear-Admiral Irminger, of the Royal Danish Navy. The
illustrations are, for the most part, taken from sketches made
by myself.

I would refer any one who intends visiting Iceland, and
who may not be acquainted with the effects of magnetic
variation on the compass-needle, to read carefully the short
note on that subject which I have given at the end of the

Preface.

last chapter. I have purposely avoided going into the
theory, being content to give such directions as will, I

trust, enable any one to take a true bearing.

I am aware that my experiences in Iceland, with regard to
its inhabitants, differ considerably from those of some others
who have written on the subject, but I can only say that I
have described them as I found them: and even if I am
wrong, I am glad that I saw the bright side of their cha-
racter, for to us they were always a civil, obliging, honest,
and hospitable people, and as such I shall always remember
them.

J. C.

Mitch AM, May 1882.

CONTENTS.

CHAPTER I.

Leaving Leith — Landing at Thorshavn — Unpleasant travelling Companion
— First Glinipse of Iceland — Landing at Reykjavik — Hotel Accom-
modation — ^The Aiding — Description of the Town — Mountain Climbing
extraordinary — Preparing for Journey Inland . . . . Page i

CHAPTER n.

Iceland Ponies — Our Guides — Start for the Interior — The Almannagjd —
The Halt at i*fngvellir Church-farm — Skyr — Old Meeting-place of
the Aiding — ^Troublesome Flies — Starting for the " Geysirs " — Change-
ability of the Weather — Haymaking — ^Arrival at the " Geysirs " . . 1 1

CHAPTER in.

The "Geysirs" — General Description — Great Gejrsir — Mode of taking
Soundings, &c. — Analysis of the Water — Strokkr — How to cause an
Eruption — Fearful Appearance — Blesi, the Traveller's Friend — Little
Geysir — A Dangerous Duty — Supposed Connection between these
Springs — Unappreciated Melody — The GuUfoss . . . . . . 22

CHAPTER IV.

Starting for Hekla — Civility of the Peasants — Fording the Hvfti — ^A
Farmer's Library — Hruni — Icelandic Sheep — ^fjdrsdrholt — A Natural
Vapour Bath — Galtaloekr — ^Hekla — Magnificent View — ^An Unpleasant
Position . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32

CHAPTER V.

Hagaey — Asmdndur, the Guide for Sprengisandr — Remarkable Hills —
Rau^ukambar — The Dust Nuisance — View from Sandafell — Along the
l*j6rsd — Cooking our Dinner — Swans — ^Jokull Rivers — Fording the
i*j6rsd — E)rvindarkofaver — Story of Eyvindar — Crossing the Sprengisandr
— ^An Icelandic Song — Lundarbrekka . . . . . . 4^

Contents.

CHAPTER VI.

Morgan starts to visit Askja — Lundarbrekka — An Uncomfortable Ride —
Lost in a Snow Storm — Gautlond — Kind Reception — ^Wild Duck Shoot-
ing — ^An Adventure with the Cows — Fishing in the Laxd — The Midges
— Morgan Returns — Instability of the Ground . . . . Page 68

CHAPTER VII.

A VISIT TO ASKJA, BY E. DELMAR MORGAN, F.R.G.S.

Preparations for Askja — J6n of Vidrkaer ; his Farm ; his Wife — Icelandic
Poetry — An Idle Day — A Visitor — D^ngjufjoll — Previous Explorations
of Askja— Svartikot— The 6da"5a-hraun— Lava Fields—" The Basket "
— A Cold Night — ^Iceland Ponies — HerBubrei'S — Pumice Cone — The
new Craters — Our Return . . . . 80

CHAPTER VIII.

•

Starting for Reykjahli^S — Fording the Laxd — Mjhratn — ^Arriving at Reyk-
jahliS — A Lively Night — ^Visit to the Sulphur Springs — On Treacherous
Ground — ^The Krafla Crater — The new Lava Bed — Snowed up at Eilffs-
vatn — Returning to Reykjahli'B, a Cold Ride — On the Road for i*verd —
iVeri Church — ^The GoiSafoss — Arrival at Ljdsavatn . . 97

CHAPTER IX.

Ljdsavatn Church — Hdls — Arrival at Akreyri — Shark Oil Factory — Ice-
landic Trading Company's Establishment — Polar Bears — General De-
scription of Akreyri — ^An Unpleasant Affair — MoiSruvellir Technical
College — ^The Oxnadalr — Steinsta'Bir — New Roads — ^Arriving at Mik-
libaer — A Wedding — Fording the HeraBsvotn — A Pleasant Ride — ^The
Story of " Grettir the Strong '^ 115

CHAPTER X.

Gil — Fording the Blanda — Useless Guide — Solheimar — Embarrassing
Kindness — Aurora Borealis — ^Svlnavatn, why so called — Hnausar — An
extraordinary Disease and its Cure — Salmon Fishing — The House of a
Sysselman — Bound for Kalmanstdnga — The new Mail Road — Crossing
the Gr(mstiingnahei"8i — Kalmanstdnga .. .. 136

Contents.

CHAPTER XL

A Disappointment — Starting for Reykjavik — ^A Long Ride — Eyrfksjokull
— The Story of Eirikr — ^The Kaldidalr — Probable Fate of our Horses —
Sharks — The Halt at Karasta"8r — Return to Reykjavik — Settling our
Accounts — Preparing for Homeward Voyage — The Eider-Duck — Fare-
well to Iceland — Return Home . . Page 155

APPENDIX I.

Icelandic Sagas

The Story of Thor«r Hre«a (The Terror)

Bandamanna Saga ; or, The Story of the Confederates
The Story of Hrafhkell, Fre/s Priest . .

173

205

230

APPENDIX 11.

Outfit and Expenses . .

250

Index ..

259

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS.

gullfoss

Iceland Pack-horses

i*fNGVELLiR Church and Farm

Great Geysir . .

Strokkr

Plan of the Great Geysir and Neighbourhood

Sections of T>itto— follow.

Plan of Iceland Sheepfold

Galtalcekr Farm — Front View and Ground Plan

XxAOAi!<Y •• •• •• ■• •• •< •■

Eyvindarkofaver, with Arnarfellsjokull in the

X^lO X AM Vi«l!< •• •• •■ «■ ■• ••

Gautlond

J6n of ViDRKiER

Johanna Katrin, J6n of ViDRKiER*s Wife
Icelandic Lady's Saddle .. .. .. .. .

Bridal Dress of an Icelandic Woman ..
Ordinary Dress of an Icelandic Woman

XxEYKJAVIK •• •• •• •• ■• ••

Eider-Duck . .

.. Frontispiece,

m •

Page

To face

}}

• •

»>

To face

)»

« •

>»

• ■

»>

To face

l»

»>

• ■

■ •

• •

>»

To face

124

>»

127

164

■ •

>»

169

Map of Iceland..

( i )

INTRODUCTION.

The first record that we have of the discovery of Iceland is
contained in a book, entitled * De Mensura Orbis Terrae,* which
was written by the Irish monk Dicuil, a.d. 825. He says
that, thirty years before, some Irish clerics had lived on the
island of Thule from the month of February until August,
and they had told him that, not only during the summer
solstice, but for some days before and after it, the sun
had disappeared for only a short time, as if it had been
hidden behind a small hill ; but that, even during this short
absence, they had sufficient light to enable them to read or
follow their usual occupations, and that they thought it
probable the sun would have been visible at that season
throughout the day and night from the top of a high moun-
tain. They also said that those who had written that Thule
was encircled with ice had evidently told falsehoods, as had
also those who pretended that, from the vernal to the autiunnal
equinox, there was unbroken daylight ; and, vice versd^ that they
were in darkness fi'om the autumnal until the vernal equinox
of the following year ; for, though they had arrived at this
island when it was very cold, they had been able to land and
take up their residence there; at the same time they had
also witnessed the alternate changes of day and nighL With
regard to ice, however, they stated that when they had rowed
for one day to the north, they found the sea to be all frozen.
Dicuil, in his book, gives a description of the Faroe Islands,
and mentions, among other things, that some Irish hermits
had, for many years previous to the time of his writing, lived

ii Introduction.

there, but had been forced to abandon them on account of the
frequent incursions of the Norwegian pirates ; he also refers to
the " innumerable multitude ** of birds to be found at these
islands, and the large number of sheep ; from which latter
they probably derived the name of Faroe or Sheep Islands,
from FauTy a sheep. As Dicuil seems to have been so well
acquainted with the existence and position of the Faroe
Islands, it seems highly improbable that he would have men-
tioned any of the islands south of that group as being the
most remote northern isle ; and indeed the length of the days,
as described by his informants, would exclude them from con-
sideration, and point to Iceland as the place where these Irish
clerics had spent six months towards the close of the eighth cen-
tury, some sixty or seventy years before Naddodr and GarBar,
the first Scandinavians who visited Iceland, were driven there
by stress of weather. GariSar circumnavigated Iceland, and
thus proved it to be an island. Towards the end of the ninth
century a report of the existence of this new land had become
rumoured among the Scandinavians, and a Norwegian, by
name F16ki, determined to make a voyage in quest of it.
Having entertained all his friends at a great sacrificial feast,
he consecrated three ravens to CMSinn, and, taking them with
him in his ship, set sail for Shetland, and from thence he went
to the Faroes. After waiting a short time there, he sailed
away to the northward, and when he had gone a considerable
distance from the land, he liberated one of the ravens, which
flew away in the direction of the Faroes, from which Floki
concluded that they were still the nearest land. Continuing
his course, he sent up the second raven, which, after flying up
into the air, came back to the ship ; but the third raven flew
away, and Floki, following the direction of the bird's flight,
shortly after came in sight of land. He then steered along the
coast to the westward, and finding that the land turned to
north, he continued to sail along it until he came to a bay

Introduction. iii

on the north-west of Iceland, where he found abundance of
fish, both in the river and the sea : here he landed the cattle
and sheep which he had brought with him, and put up houses ;
but, as he neglected to make any hay for his stock during the
summer, they all died in the winten Becoming disheartened,
he returned to Norway, giving a very poor account of the
country which he had discovered, and which he called Iceland,
because, from the top of a mountain which he ascended
during the winter, he saw a firth filled with ice ; this firth he
called f safjorS, and the land Island.

There seems to have been among F16ki's followers one at
least who regarded the country in a more favourable light
than his leader. This man's name was f6r61fr; he pro-
nounced it to be a land flowing with butter ; but he was not
believed, and was ever after known as " Butter l^drdlfi'.'* Be-
tween the accounts of Iceland given by F16ki and i*6r61fi",
their countrymen must have been very much puzzled, but
there were doubtless some among their companions who gave
true and impartial accounts of the land they had visited, and
who must have seen that with forethought they might have
kept their cattle and sheep alive during the winter ; indeed,
one, whose name was Herj61fi*, is mentioned as having done
so ; but even these more truthful and moderate accounts do
not appear to have held out sufiicient inducements to the
Norwegians to try their fortunes in the newly-discovered land,
although, if we may judge from the accounts given of Ice-
land in the Sagas, the country must once have possessed a
milder climate and more productive soil than it does at the
present day. The pastures are described as being much more
extensive than they now are; instances are given of cattle
being able to find sufiicient feed for themselves during the
winter ; pigs were not only kept, but, in some parts of the
island, were numerous, whereas there is not one in Iceland now.
Many parts of the island are spoken of as being covered with

iv Introduction.

woods, and indeed some of the names of places point to this
fact, but as no large trees have ever been found in the bogs, it
is probable that these woods, though undoubtedly much more
numerous than at present, were composed of the same dwarf
birch-trees which are to be found in the existing, so-called,
forests of Iceland ; these are seldom thicker than a man*s
wrist, and rarely attain the height of twelve feet. The fisheries
are described as being extensive and productive; the same
description may be given of them at the present day.

Iceland, however, owes its colonisation not so much to its
attractions, as to the stronger reason of necessity. In the
latter half of the ninth century, Haraldr, one of the many
chieftains or lungs who ruled Norway, set himself to the task
of subduing all the petty chieftains, and uniting Norway
under his sole sovereignty. His resources were greatly supe-
rior to those of any one of his antagonists, and he seized
every opportunity to attack them in detail. As might be
expected from so hardy and courageous a people, he met
with a stubborn resistance, and it was not until the decisive
battle of Hafursfjord, in 872, in which Haraldr was vic-
torious, that he became sole ruler of Norway, and that all
resistance to his authority was useless. Norway being no
longer a safe place for those who had been the king*s
enemies, they fled the country, some going to the Orkneys,
Shetland, the Hebrides, the north of Scotland, and Ireland,
while others went to Iceland.

Two foster-brothers — Ing61fi and Hjorleifr — ^who had for-
feited their estates in Norway, set sail for the land discovered
by F16ki, and were the first to settle in Iceland. Having
spent a winter there, they came back to Norway, but returned
to Iceland in the ensuing summer, taking with them their
sister Helga and her husband Leifr, who was shortly after
killed by his slaves. Three years later, Ingolfi settled at
Reykjavik, the present capital of Iceland.

Introduction.

From this time the tide of emigration began to flow
towards Iceland. All the petty chiefs who were discon-
tented with the rule of Haraldr, were not slow to follow the
example of Ing61fi, and emigrated to Iceland, and many of
those who had fled to other countries for safety, now joined
their countrymen in the land of their adoption, bringing
with them their household gods, their families, their thralls,
and all their movable property.

The manner in which they determined the site of their
future homestead was extremely curious. On approaching
the land, the chief threw overboard the pillars which had
supported his high seat at home, and where these were driven
on shore, he considered the gods had directed him to fix his
future dwelling-place ; and sometimes they had to search for
years before they found the pillars again. An instance is
given where one of these intending settlers, having died on the
voyage, left instructions with his son to place his body in
a strong coffin and throw it overboard, telling him to settle
where he found it driven on shore.

To take formal possession of the land, the settler had to
kindle a fire at his starting-place, and then another in sight of
it, and so on, until the whole space he intended to occupy
had been thus surrounded by fires ; but, as settlers became
numerous, no one was allowed to take possession of more
land than he could place between two opposite fires in a day.
In the morning he was to make a fire in the east, and then he
was to go as &r west as he could in a day and make another
fire. There seems to have been no necessity to fix the
boundary inland, as in most localities the interior of Iceland,
at a distance of 25 miles from the coast, is a barren desert.
The women who were desirous of taking up land, had a
harder task to perform than the men ; they were not allowed
to take possession of more land than they could make a two-
year old heifer go round from sunrise to sunset, in the spring.

vi Introduction.

In the year 929, the first meeting of the General Assembly
or Alping took place. It had been found necessary for the
well-being of the community to adopt some code of laws
suited to the peculiar circumstances of Iceland, by which
quarrels could be settled before a court composed of the most
important inhabitants, and thus put a stop to the feuds and
bloodshed which had been so prevalent. The whole island
was divided into four quarters — North, South, East, and
West — each of which sent their representatives to the Allying,
which consisted of 144 members. This assembly had both
legislative and judiciary power, and the president, who was
elected for three years, had to direct the proceedings of the
assembly, and decide all cases of doubtful law. The authority
of the Aiding was upheld by all the more powerfiil chiefs,
and though feuds between single chiefs continued to exist,
they had in the event to bow to the decisions of the National
Assembly. The Alt>ing first met at f ingvallr, and continued to
do so at the appointed times until 1800, when it was abolished*

Christianity would seem to have made considerable pro-
gress in Iceland previous to the eleventh century, for it is
recorded that the Althing in the year 1000 was engaged in a
discussion as to whether Christianity should, for the future,
be the religion of the land, and their decision in favour of it
was hastened by the following circumstance.

While the debate was at its height, a messenger brought
intelligence that a volcanic eruption had taken place in the
district of Olfus, and that the house of the high priest
Thoroddr was in danger of being destroyed. The heathen
party, wishing to turn this event to their advantage, ex-
claimed: "Can it be a matter of surprise that the gods
should be angry at such speeches as we have heard ? ** To
which Snorri Godi, a Christian, replied: "At what were
the gods angry at the period when the very lava on which
we now stand was burning ? " Though the question had its

Introduction. vii

effect on some of Snorri Godi's hearers, it by no means
convinced the majority of the heathen ; but what could not
be gained by argument was accomplished by bribery. The
President of the Assembly, who at the time was a heathen,
was induced by the Christian party, for a consideration, to
undertake to bring before the Alj>ing, laws that would suit
both parties, and retired to his bed for twenty-four hours to
mature his proposals ; after which he arose, and mounting the
Law Rocky and calling the people round him, said: ^'If
we have not laws and religion in common our peace is gone."
To these words he added such persuasive arguments, that
both Christians and heathens pledged themselves to keep the
laws proposed by him. Having thus secured the adhesion of
both parties, he proposed that every one should become a
Christian by being baptized ; that those of the heathen party
who wished to worship the old gods and eat horseflesh
might do so secretly; but if done in the presence of wit-
nesses, it would be punished with outlawry. Both parties
were satisfied with these proposals, and Christianity became,
in name at least, the religion of the country.

The free state of Iceland maintained its independence
until the year 1261, when it was united with Norway. Its
overthrow was entirely due to internal dissensions ; a cor-
rupt body of chiefs and rulers having sold it to Hdkon " the
old,** who at that time occupied the throne of Norway.
This crafty monarch, by the free use of bribery and pro-
mises of preferment, gained the support of the most powerful
Icelandic chiefs, and eventually, with their assistance, suc-
ceeded in uniting Iceland with Norway. This, however, was
not accomplished until the country had been plunged into a
civil war, in which many of the contending chiefs lost their
lives. In the year 1380 Iceland was transferred to Danish
rule, and under that government it has remained to the
present day. Until the year 1490 the ports of Iceland

viii Introduction.

were open to the traders of all countries; after that, for
nearly three hundred years, the commerce of the country
was farmed out to merchants and trading companies, much
to the detriment of the island. This was afterwards modified,
and all trade was thrown open to Danes and Icelanders alike,
but to no others.

During the years 1540-51 the Reformation was intro-
duced into Iceland, and, like the introduction of Christianity,
met with no serious opposition on the part of the inhabitants.
From the date of its union to Norway the history of Iceland
presents a long list of calamities ; several times the population
has been greatly reduced in numbers by pestilence or famine,
but now it may fairly be hoped that brighter prospects have
opened for its future. Freedom in trade, and self-government,
which have done so much for other countries, were in 1874
extended to Iceland ; and, as its people are a shrewd perse-
vering race, it is to be hoped that their future history may
be as bright as some of the past has been gloomy. The
population has been steadily increasing for the past ten years ;
the Census Returns of 1870 showed a population of 69,763 ;
that of 188 1, 73,000. The principal towns, such as Reykja-
vik and Akreyri, have increased both in size and importance;
and trade, which at one period in Iceland's history was all but
dead, is brisk and flourishing.

The geographical features of Iceland are not less inter-
esting than the history of its people. Iceland lies just
south of the Arctic Circle, which indeed passes through one
of its outlying islands, Grimsey. It is contained between
d'^ 15' and 66° 30' north latitude, and between 13° 38'
and 24° 40' west longitude. It is about one-fourth
smaller than England, or one-sixth larger than Ireland ; its
greatest length is 300 statute miles, and its greatest breadth
200. The coast is deeply indented with fjords, and the
valleys are drained by large and rapid rivers. The whole

Introduction, ix

of the interior consists of a barren tableland, which attains
in some places an elevation of 2500 feet above sea-level.
Every part of the island abounds, more or less, with lofty
mountains and jokuUs (ice-mountains), the largest of these,
" Vatna-jokuU," having an area equal to that of the county of
Cornwall-.

Iceland owes its formation to the operations of submarine
volcanoes, and the present area of volcanic action extends
considerably beyond the coast line. Within the same limits
bf space there is no place on the earth*s surface which exhibits
such numerous and varied evidences of past and present
volcanic action as Iceland ; tracts of lava ejected from its
volcanoes, at dates varying from the most distant antiquity
to 1874, traverse the island in all directions, while the nu-
merous boiling springs and volcanoes, from which the steam
still issues, show that beneath the surface the same forces are
at work, which, in times past, have converted flourishing dis-
tricts into desolate and forbidding wastes, turning rivers from
their courses, and changing the whole aspect of the surrounding
country.

The volcanoes which have erupted during the present cen-
tury are : Hekla, Skapta, Katla, EyjafjallajokuU, and Askja,
which latter was in a state of great activity when visited by
one of our party, Mr. Delmar Morgan, in August 1881.

The lakes of Iceland are very numerous, but, with the ex-
ception of Kngvalla-vatn and Myvatn, they are all small.
The rivers have, generally speaking, a northerly or southerly
course, the most important being the JokuUsi and Skjal-
fanda-fljot, which flow to the north ; and the tjorsa and
Hvit^, which flow to the south. The jokuUs occupy
about one-fourth of the whole area of the island, and give
rise to the numerous small rivers which so much increase
the difficulties and dangers of travel in Iceland.

The means of communication between the different parts

Introduction.

of the island are of the most primitive kind ; roads, in our
acceptation of the term, only exist within a mile or two
of Reykjavik ; horse-tracks of the roughest description have
to be traversed, and these it would, in many places, be diffi-
cult to follow, if it were not for the cairns which have been
erected to indicate their direction. An attempt, however, is
at present being made in the northern districts to improve
these tracks, and on our way from Akreyri to the south, we
met working parties who were employed removing the blocks
of lava and other obstructions from, what our guide informed
me was to be, the new post-road.

It would be impossible within the limits of a single chapter
to give any more than a mere outline of the history and
geography of a country so full of interest, in these two par-
ticulars, as Iceland ; but it is to be hoped that this sketch may
enable the reader, who has perchance given but little previous
attention to the subject, to form a tolerably accurate esti-
mate of the history and features of the country, a journey
through which forms the subject of the following pages.

SUMMER TRAVELLING

IN ICELAND,

CHAPTER I.

Leaving Leith — Landing at Thorshavn — Unpleasant travelling Companion
— First Glimpse of Iceland — Landing at Reykjavik — Hotel Accommodation
— The Alping-^Description of the Town — Mountain Climbing extra-
ordinary — Preparing for Journey Inland.

On the afternoon of July. 28th, ci 881, our party, consisting
of Mr. Cuthbert E. Peek, Mr. E. Delmar Morgan, and myself,
left the docks at Leith, in the Danish mail steamer "Val-
demar," for the Faroe Islands and Iceland. After calling in
at Tvero, the post-town of Suderoe, to land the mail, we pro-
ceeded to Thorshavn, the capital of the Faroes. We had a
large quantity of flour on board for this place, and as the
heavy rains prevented this^cargo being discharged, we went
on shore to inspect the town, which contains some 300 houses,
a church, a large and unsightly government-house, schools,
store-houses, and the remains of an old fort. It rained when
we first sighted these islands, it rained when we went on shore,
and was raining when we left. Thorshavn, with its turf-
roofed houses, white church, and back-ground of green hills,
presents a pretty enough picture when viewed from the sea,
but it does not improve on closer acquaintance. The streets
are seldom as wide as ten feet, and sanitary arrangements
seem to be neglected. After looking through the town, we
took a walk into the country along a well-made pony-road,
which leads to the ruins of a Romanist church, and, at about

Summer Travelling in Iceland.

2l mile from the town, we turned to the right and ascended a
hill, from which we obtained a good view of the island.
There was, however, very little to be seen, for it is a dreary
country, without trees, roads, or rivers, and presents to the eye
a monotonous succession of hills covered with verdure.

Having at length landed the cargo, and taken on board a
party of Faroe Island fishermen and their boats, we steamed
away for Iceland. On getting clear of the islands we met
with a heavy gale, and, judging by the sounds which issued
from the state-rooms surrounding the main cabin, and fell
most unpleasantly on the ear, especially at meal times, I
should say that it must have caused a good deal of discomfort
to some of our fellow-passengers. Though I have before my
eyes, or, more properly speaking, my mind's eye, the danger
of being prolix in giving too detailed an account of so unin-
teresting a voyage as that from Leith to Iceland, yet, being
impelled by philanthropic feelings, I cannot refrain from
mentioning an incident of the voyage which may, I trust, be
useful to future passengers in the Danish mail steamer, and
which will, I hope, duly impress them with the necessity that
exists of making a careful examination of their cabins on
taking possession of them. The Captain of the "Valdemar**
had most kindly assigned us a cabin in which we were able to
stow away the greater part of our belongings, and it seemed
to be all that we could desire, but (and that little word makes
all the difference) we found that there was a most deadly
smell in one particular corner, which the steward could in
nowise account for, and even went so far, after taking a long
sniff, as to declare did not exist. Now there may be some
things which are mere creations of fancy, but I have yet to
learn that a dreadful smell is one of those things ; and so we
determined to solve the mystery by moving everything out of
the cabin, which we did, and then, by feeling under the bed-
place, we came on a large parcel, carefully sewn up in canvas

Landing at Reykjavik.

and directed to some gentlemen in Iceland. There could be
no doubt that this was the offender, for it bore the strongest
possible evidence against itself; it was forthwith handed over
to the steward, who seemed rather to like the smell than
otherwise. He told me that it was a delicacy, and gave me
its name, which I have forgotten ; its English name, however,
is shark's flesh in a state of decomposition, and as such can
scarcely be considered desirable in a small cabin. Having
mentioned this circumstance, it is but just to the Captain to
say, that he did all in his power to make his passengers com-
fortable, and would, doubtless, have been very angry with the
steward if I had reported the matter to him.

Thirty-eight hours after leaving Thorshavn we first sighted
Iceland. When I came on deck at 5 o'clock, Myrdals and
Eyjafjalla jokuUs were full in view. Shortly after we sighted
the Vestmann's Islands, and as we had letters to leave there —
three was, I believe, the exact number — ^we stopped off Kaup-
stadr sufficient time to allow a boat to come off for the mail.
The weather was lovely, and this island presented a very
beautifiil appearance ; a portion of it that rises to the height
of many hundred feet was covered with sheep, which looked
like white specks on the green sides of the mountain. After
leaving this place we had a distant view of Hekla, and arrived
at Reykjavik shortly after midnight.

A more beautiful morning can scarcely be imagined than
that on which I first set eyes on Reykjavik ; the sun shone out
brightly, not a cloud could be seen, and the harbour was as
smooth as glass. Early as it was there were plenty of signs
of life on shore, but I was forcibly struck by the entire ab-
sence of any of that stir and excitement which, in English
colonies, invariably follows the advent of a mail-steamer. The
good people of Reykjavik seemed to be too much absorbed
in their daily avocations to give more than a passing glance
at the vessel, which periodically brought them news from the

B 2

Summer Travelling in Iceland.

outer world, and which, for a time at least, furnished some of
them with lucrative employment. Any one unacquainted
with the facts of the case would have thought that the
"Valdemar'* had been at anchor in the harbour as many
weeks as she had in reality been hours, so little notice did
she attract. However, after patiently waiting for some time,
we at last succeeded in hiring a boat to take ourselves and
our traps ashore. On landing we were met by Gier Zoega,
the well-known guide, to whom we had written to provide us
with horses and rooms, and to make all the necessary arrange-
ments for our journey. We were glad to find that every-
thing had been prepared, but it appeared that some little
delay must take place, as the horses were in the country and
had to be fetched, besides which our baggage had to be made
up in packs of equal weight, and it had yet to be seen if our
saddles would fit the horses which we had to ride. With all
this to do, Zoega told us that it would be impossible to make
a start on the morrow, but that he hoped to have every-
thing ready by the day following. In the meantime he
volunteered to escort us to the " Alexandra," the only hotel
in the place, so that we might take possession of the rooms
which he had engaged for us. Nothing loth, for we had
risen at a very early hour, and it was now breakfast-time, we
started off, Zoega leading the way ; but on arriving at the
hotel we were not received with that degree of, politeness
which we generally expect to meet in Danish hotels.
On the contrary, a certain heavy, lumpish-looking young
gentleman, whom I believe to have been the waiter, cook,
and billiard-marker of the establishment, seemed to regard us
in the light of an invading force, and though I was unable to
understand one word that he said to Zoega, I felt convinced
that he was giving utterance to the Icelandic equivalent for
" You don't lodge here, Mr. Fergusson." This, indeed,
proved to be the case, as he informed us through Zoega,

The Alping.

in the most barefaced manner, that he admitted the rooms
had been engaged for us, but that the proprietor had
again let them over our heads to a French gentleman.
This statement was afterwards confirmed by the proprietor
himself, who, though a shade more polite, was just as de-
termined as his lumpish assistant. Zoega tried to excuse
this man's bad conduct by telling us that he was a Dane.
I am inclined, however, to think that he must have been
mistaken as to his nationality, for I have always found the
Danes to be a polite and obliging people ; it is nevertheless
possible that this person may be the inevitable exception
which goes to prove the rule. In the long run we had no
reason to regret this little contre-temps^ as Zoega, after taking
us to his own home and regaling us with coffee and cakes,
procured very comfortable quarters for us at his brother's
house.

When we arrived at Reykjavik the Alping (local legis-
lature) was in session. It consists of thirty-six members,
thirty of whom are elected by household suffrage, and six are
appointed by the King. It is divided into two Houses, the
Upper and the Lower. The Upper House consists of the
six members nominated by the King, and a like number
elected by the representatives of the people out of their own
body. The Lower House consists of the remaining twenty-
four representative members. The Alping meets every second
year, and sits for two months. The executive consists of the
Governor-General {Landshof^ingi) and two under governors,
one for the south and west, another for the north and east.
Under these are the sheriffs {Syslumenn)^ who act as tax
gatherers, notaries public, and magistrates.

For electoral and judicial purposes Iceland is divided into
eighteen Syslur (counties), and these are again divided into
169 Hreppur^ or poor-law districts. The administration of
justice is carried out by the Syslumenn ; there is, however,
power to appeal from their decisions to the superior court at

Summer Travelling m Iceland,

Reykjavik, and again from this court to the Supreme Court
at Copenhagen. The State Church of Iceland is Lutheran,
and I was told that the Icelanders to a man belong to it.
There is one bishop, who is appointed by the King; his
bishopric is divided into forty deaneries, and these again into
290 parishes, some of which have no resident minister. The
influence of the clergy at all elections is, I was informed, very
considerable.

Having presented our letters of introduction to his
Excellency the Governor, and the Principal of the College,
we started out on a tour of inspection through the town,
which must have greatly increased in size and importance
during the few years which have elapsed since the Danish
Government granted Iceland the Constitution which has
secured to it a legislature of its own, the administration of
all local affairs, and by virtue of which it is not required to
contribute to the general State expenditure.

In 1 8 14 Reykjavik is described by Henderson as con-
sisting of two streets, and having a very mean appearance.
It seems to have made but very slow progress until within
the last ten years, as the description which several travellers
have given of it previous to 1870 agrees pretty closely with
that of Henderson. Now, however, things have changed
considerably for the better ; there are good substantial public
buildings, a hospital, a large public square, many stores where
almost anything can be purchased, and all trades are fairly
represented.

The principal street extends along the water side, and is
continued for about half a mile beyond the business part of
me town ; there are several other streets, all of which con-
tam a few really good houses, some of stone, but the great
majority of them are wooden buildings. The finest edifice
in Iceland is that in which the Alping meets ; it is well and
substantially built of stone. The cathedral is a building
capable of holding about 500 people ; it contains a font.

Reykjavik,

the work of Thorwaldsen, which bears the following inscrip-
tion : "Opus hoc RoM^K fecit ET ISLANDIiE, XERRiE SIBl

GENTILIAC^, PIETATIS CAUSA DONAVIT AlBERTUS ThOR-

WALDSEN, ANNO M.DCcc.xxvii." The post office is on one
side of the public square, in the centre of which stands a
fine statue of Thorwaldsen. At the back of the town there
is a freshwater lake, and the stream which issues from it
divides Reykjavik into two unequal parts, that to the west
being the larger, and containing nearly all the business houses,
while the Governor's residence, the Theological College,
Observatory, many private residences, and the Gaol are to
the east. I also observed several substantial dwelling-houses
in the course of erection in this quarter. Not many years
ago the town did not extend beyond the marshy valley which
lies between two low hills on either side of the harbour, but
now the marsh has been drained, and the town has spread
for a considerable distance over the rising ground.

I do not remember having seen an uglier town than
Reykjavik ; the houses are of all sizes, colours, and shapes ;
not a tree is to be seen, and no definite plan seems to have
been followed in laying out the streets; should the place
grow much larger the town surveyor will have a difficult job
before him, as beyond the existing streets, the houses have been
built anywhere, so that to extend a street in a straight line it
would necessitate the pulling down of several houses. The
ugliness of Reykjavik is not, however, its worst feature, for I
am bound to confess that the entire absence of anything like
sanatory arrangements makes itself very apparent, even to the
most unobservant, and is absolutely shocking to the untrained
olfactory nerves of the stranger ; in some places the stench
of decayed fish and other abominations was so dreadful that
they powerfiiUy reminded me of a Chinese settlement in a
Californian mining district.

Having made our calls, and seen all that was to be seen, we

8 Summer Travelling in Iceland.

returned to our lodgings, and found Gier Zk>ega inspecting
our saddles, which he declared must be re-stufFed. There is
something very peculiar about saddles ; it matters not what pre-
cautions you take, or what experience you bring to bear on this
subject of stuffing, no sooner do you land in a foreign country
than the guides and local saddlers tell you that your saddle
must be pulled to pieces, or your horse's back will be ruined ;
the same thing has happened to me at the Cape, California,
British Columbia, and other places. Perhaps the saddlers
may be right, but to me it has always appeared that the saddle,
after having undergone the supposed necessary improvements,
was much more likely to injure the horse, than when it came
out of the hands of a first-rate maker in England, who knew
the kind of beast it was intended to fit. At our lodgings we
met an American gentleman, who, it would appear, had tra-
velled a great deal in this part of the world, and who gave
such graphic descriptions of his hairbreadth escapes, the
mountains he had ascended, and the tremendous journeys
which he had to perform, that I felt duly impressed with
the necessity which exists, for the traveller in the interior
of Iceland, to combine in his own proper person the activity
of the monkey, and the natatory powers of the fish. . I should
have been even more impressed had.this gentleman favoured me
with the account of his ascent of HeriSubrei*, which he pub-
lished in the * New York Tribune,* and which I afterwards read
in the * Weekly Detroit Free Press' of November 26th, 1881.
Fearing that I might not do justice to this unprecedented feat,
were I to attempt to describe the manner in which he per-
formed it, I will give his own words, which may perhaps
convey some useful hints to the members of the Alpine
Club.

" The only way to ascend for fifteen hundred feet was to
fly a large kite with an anchor attached, and a rope fastened
to the anchor. After securing the anchor to the rocks above

Preparing for Journey Inland.

my head, I would pull myself up by means of the rope. By
repeating this operation many times, I made the ascent in
thirty-eight hours."

This may, I think, be regarded as the greatest climb-
ing feat on record, and one that must have severely taxed
the powers of endurance. In order that we may justly
estimate the magnitude of this undertaking, we must bear
in mind the great difficulty of constructing a kite, in the
interior of Iceland, of sufficient size to lift an anchor and
many yards of rope, strong enough to bear the weight of
a man; then again, what truly wonderful skill must have
been exercised to make the kite drop the anchor just in the
right place, " when it was snowing and blowing so that he could
not see fifty feet from him," and as there are no anchors in
the interior of Iceland, the feet of having provided one for the
purpose of climbing mountains is an evidence of forethought
that is truly astonishing.

When I read the foregoing account, I could not but feel
that, after all, fact is stranger than fiction.

In the evening we took some observations to find the error
of our watches and then turned in.

We spent the greater part of the next day in arranging
our packs, and were pleased to find that our boxes, which
had been made in England, were exactly what we required.
I shall have more to say about these pack-saddle boxes further
on, as the comfort of the traveller depends in a great measure
on their being properly constructed.

As we had decided to cross the island, we determined to
send our surplus provisions to Akreyri by the steamer,
taking with us no more than was absolutely necessary. In
the evening we had a long talk with Gier Zoega about the
route we should take, as the season was getting late; and,
acting on his advice, we agreed to make for Hagaey, the farm
where the Sprengisandr guide lives, and to be led by his

lo Summer Travelling in Iceland.

experience as to our future movements ; visiting Geysir and
Hekla on our way. None of the horses had yet come in, but
we were assured that everything would be ready for a start
the next morning.

I took the dip of the magnetic needle with a small instru-
ment, and found it to be 78^ degrees ; this is only an approxi-
mate, my needle being too short to determine the dip with
any degree of accuracy.

Our Guides. ii

CHAPTER II.

Iceland PonUs — Our Guides — Start for the Interior — The Almannagji—The
Bait at Pingvellir Church-farm — Skyr — Old Meeting-plcue of the Alping
— Troublesome Flies — Starting for the " Gey sirs " — Changeability of the
Weather — Haymaking — Arrival at the " Geysirs'*

August $thy 1 88 1. — After an early breakfast we went to Gier
Zoega's house, where we found that all the horses had been
brought in, and were standing huddled together in a small
yard. I cannot say that an inspection of these noble animals
inspired me with any great amount of confidence, when I
considered the nature of the country across which these
little beasts would have to carry ourselves and our baggage.
They looked for all the world like a collection of coster-
mongers' ponies, and contained among them some of the
ugliest beasts that I have ever seen. I thought, however,
that they might only be the pack animals, and therefore
asked for the riding horses ; when these were pointed out to
me, I felt by no means cheered. Neither of the two that fell
to my lot stood over thirteen hands ; one had wall-eyes and a
fiddle-case head, the other was certainly a better-looking
animal, but did not seem up to fourteen stone. I ventured
to express my misgivings to Gier Zoega, who only smiled
at my fears, and declared that they were really good horses,
well able to carry a heavier man than myself, and indeed he
was quite correct in saying this, for a better little beast for
fording a river or going over bad and dangerous ground than
my ugly wall-eyed horse, if he was only allowed to have his
head and go his own way, could not be wished for.

Having provided ourselves with a sufficient amount of
Danish small change to pay our way at the farms in the

Summer Travelling in Iceland.

interior (a very necessary precaution), the animals being
packed and everything ready for a start, we mounted our
horses and rode out of Reykjavik by the tingvellir road.

Our party consisted of our three selves, three guides, and
twenty-two horses, two for each rider and every pair of boxes ;
these are hooked on either side of the pack-saddles, and
farther secured by a girth. No headgear of any kind is used
with the pack-horses, but a good crupper is indispensable.
The woodcut, which is copied from a photograph of two
horses, in the possession of Mr. Cuthbert E. Peek, will give
the reader a good idea of the Icelandic method of packing.
They represent, however, a larger and finer class of animal
than usually falls to the lot of the traveller.

Icclaiitl I'.ick -horses.

The guides whose services we had engaged were about as
unlike one another in appearance and general character as
any three men well could be. The head guide, torSa
Zoega, was a tall fair man with a pleasant expression of coun-
tenance; he spoke English well, and had received a fair edu-

Start for tfie Interior. 13

cation. I never saw him the least out of temper; he
always had a smile and a cheerful answer ready, even under
somewhat trying circumstances ; his knowledge of the Sagas
made him a pleasant fellow-traveller, and enabled him to
invest many of the surrounding objects with an interest which
they would not otherwise have possessed, as well as to impart
a great deal of information as to the early history of Iceland.
Evandr, who took charge of the pack-train, was a square-built
middle-aged man ; he was an inveterate snufF-taker, and
always carried a large supply of that article with him in a
horn. The first time I saw him indulging in this habit, we
were proceeding at a sharp trot, and, for the life of me, I
could not think what he was trying to do ; it seemed as if he
were essaying to play a tune on the horn with his nose ; he
was in reality only filling it with snufF. He was a man of
few words, but was always the first to ford a doubtful river,
and possessed a marvellous power of finding his way from one
place to another, even in a snowstorm. Ziggi, our third
man, was in size and appearance quite a boy ; he was a light
weight, and as he would ride at anything, was most useful
in bringing back refractory pack-horses when they wandered
from the trail.

After leaving Reykjavik we had a very good road until we
reached the EUi^aar, a river well known for its salmon fishing.
The country through which we had passed was nearly desti-
tute of vegetation, and bestrewed with lava blocks; the
mountain scenery, however, was very fine; on the left the
snow-capped peaks of Esja stood out in bold relief against
the blue sky. Directly in front of us stood Skalafell, and far
away to the right we could see, in the dim distance, the
mountains at the southern end of Kngvalla-vatn, with occa-
sional glimpses of the Faxafjord, while the people at work
haymaking on the bright green patches in the vicinity of the
homesteads, and our own pack-train fording the river in the

14 Summer Travelling in Iceland.

foreground, lent life and animation to the scene. For the
next ten miles the track was fairly good; we saw several
farm-houses on either side, and after passing between some
small lakes, turned to the right into the plain of Seljadalr,
where we halted to change horses and take luncheon. This
place is surrounded by hills, with a small stream winding
through it. There was very little grass, as it is the usual
halting-place for all parties either leaving or returning to
Reykjavik. After an hour's halt we started again, and com-
menced ascending the MosfellshieSi, and soon attained an
elevation of looo feet above the sea-level ; all signs of a
track vanished, and the country was so thickly covered with
angular blocks of lava, that it seemed quite wonderful how
our horses managed to travel over them without cutting their
legs. The general direction of the route was marked by piles
of stones. I had not been on horseback for some years, and
the uneasy pace of my horse was very fatiguing. Towards
evening we got the first glimpse of the lake (Kngvalla-vatn),
and the track having improved, we set forward at a pace that
was quite contrary to all my previous experiences with pack-
trains, and shortly after arrived at the entrance of a tre-
mendous chasm, called the Almannagja, where we had to
dismount and descend a kind of natural staircase. I nearly
made this descent in a much more rapid manner than I had
any intention of doing, as one of my spurs caught the edge of
a piece of lava, and would inevitably have thrown me down
had I not retained a firm hold of my horse's bridle. When
we arrived at the bottom, we found ourselves standing between
two precipices, one of which rose to the height of nearly two
hundred feet, and which were about one hundred feet apart.
In the dim twilight it seemed as if we had entered the ruined
courtyard of some giant's castle. Remounting our horses,
we passed through a gap in the eastern precipice, and, after
descending a hill and fording the Oxara, we arrived at

Pingvellir. 1 5

the church-farm of l^fngvcUir, where we were hospitably
received by the resident minister. We were all very hungry
after our ride, and did ample justice to the trout, coffee, and
skyr which were set before us.

" Skyr ^ holds a very prominent place in Icelandic cuisine ;
it is, indeed, the national dish, and one of great antiquity ; it
was a great favourite with the Norse-men, and their descend-
ants are not a whit behind tliem in their liking for it. Ice-
land is, indeed, a very Land of Skyr ; whenever or wherever
we halted at a farm, the first thing that was set before us was
a bowl of this most refreshing article of food, and I noticed
that the women of the household seemed to be particularly
pleased if the quality of their skyr was praised. The mysteries
of its manufecture would appear to be somewhat complicated,
and I never could quite understand the process. It is, how-
ever, made from the curds of sheep's milk, over which cream
or milk is poured, and it is then sweetened with sugar.

When we first arrived we found the flies very trouble-
some, but on a light breeze springing up they all disappeared.
Being thoroughly tired I was very glad to turn into bed, but
I did not get much sleep, as the bedstead, in common with
all the other bedsteads that I have seen in Iceland, was some-
thing under five feet long, and it is my misfortune to measure
six feet ; it was, indeed, a misfortune under the circumstances,
for the beds were otherwise all that could be desired.

We were called early the next morning by a young lady,
who informed us that our coffee was ready; and hastily
dressing, we found the minister waiting in the guest-chamber,
ready to show us the place where the Alfingj or national
assembly, used to meet until the beginning of the present
century. Our host spoke English very fairly, but seemed
anxious to converse with me in Latin ; I, however, declined,
not feeling any great degree of confidence in my ability to
sustain a lively conversation in that language.

1 6 Summer Travelling in Iceland.

At a short distance from the farm we passed along a natural
causeway, about ten feet wide, between two enormous fissures
in the rock, called respectively Flosagjd and Nikaldsagj^.
After advancing for a hundred yards, the space gradually
widened out, until, at the place where the Aiding used to hold
its sittings, the rifts were separated by more than one hun-
dred feet. These Gjar — pronounced geows — ^varied from twenty
to forty feet in width, and descended sheer down for about
forty feet, at which distance from the brink they were full of
water, as clear as . ^rrystal, so clear, indeed, that stones at the
depth of fifty feet below the surface were plainly visible, while
in some places the depth of water was so great that it had
quite an inky black appearance. Here I noticed one of the
subterranean rivers which are so common in Iceland. On
the eastern side of the Nikal4sagj4 was a large cavern, and
into this the water rushed, no doubt finding its way eventually
into the lake.

Our host, who was both well-informed and pleasant in
his manner, told us that we were standing on the exact spot
where so many disputes had been settled and where all the
laws were made, by the Aiding in the olden time. Just in
front of us was the " Logberg " (Law Mount), a low mound
which served the purpose of a rostrum, from the summit of
which the new laws had to be shouted to the people assem-
bled in the natural amphitheatre which lies between the
Logberg and the Almannagjd, before they could be put in
force. Altogether a safer place for an assembly in troublous
times would be hard to find.

It was a beautiful morning; the little wooden church and
the farm-house, with its simple outbuildings, stood between
us and the Kngvalla lake, whose waters were as smooth as
glass, only disturbed by the rising of the trout. Round its
shores and up to the farm-buildings were the cattle and sheep
grazing, while in the far distance, on the other side of the

Starting for the ^^ Gey sirs!" 17

lake, rose the mountains of Hengill and Bdrfell ; to our right
was the Almannagji, and still farther on we could see the
falls of the Oxar4, which afterwards wound its way peace-
fully, among many little islands, towards the lake. The only
thing wanting to make a really beautiful picture was foliage,
but there was nothing in the shape of a tree to be seen, ex-
cept the stunted and nearly leafless dwarf birches, which in
this place seldom reached the height of two feet, and, like
the plums in a midshipman's " duff^ were very few and far
between. I was, however, unable to admire my surroundings
as much as I doubtless should have done in consequence
of the affection that some hundreds (I should probably be
nearer the truth if I said thousands) of black flies evinced
for my nose and ears. In vain did I slap my face until
it was as hot as fire; the more of them I killed the
more came to the attack, until at last, fairly beaten, I had
to retreat.

We boiled a thermometer to test the accuracy of our
aneroid readings, as we feared that the rough travelling might
have put our instruments out of order ; such, however, was
not the case. We frequently repeated this very necessary
operation, and had the satisfaction of finding that our aneroids
kept constant errors throughout. The elevations above sea-
level, computed fi'om the observations taken during our
journey, are shown on the map. The total error of our
prismatic compass, we found by observation to be 41^ west,
and the approximate dip of the magnetic needle 79° ; these
results would show that, in spite of the immense quantity of
lava in the immediate vicinity, the magnetic needle was not
affected by local attraction to any great extent at the place
of observation, just outside the farm.

Having paid our bill, we left for Geysir, accompanied by
myriads of black flies, which caused us a great deal of dis-
comfort. For the first five or six miles we skirted the lake ;

1 8 Summer Travelling in Iceland.

the track was a great improvement oA that which we had
travelled over yesterday, but the whole face of the country was
covered with lava-beds, in the fissures of which the stunted
birch seemed to be striving to maintain a precarious existence.
At the eastern extremity of the lake we began to ascend, and
came in sight of a very large rift, called the Hrafnagja. Like
the Almannagja, of which it is an exact counterpart, it runs
in a north-easterly direction for several miles. It is curious
to notice how the whole of the ground between these two
huge "Gjar" seems to have sunk below the level of the
surrounding country. I was forcibly struck with the fact
of this subsidence, in somewhat similar circumstances, on
another occasion which I shall notice further on.

We soon began to experience the changeability of the
weather in this country, with but little warning ; the day, which
had been pleasantly warm and fine, suddenly became cold, and
a kind of half sleet and half rain began to fall steadily ; being
provided with suits of oil-skin we were enabled to keep our-
selves tolerably dry, but what I most regretted was that it
hid the surrounding country from view. We continued to
ascend until we reached an elevation of 1540 feet, at which
time we were passing round the southern end of a mountain
called Re5rSarbarmr and began to descend. As the rain had
ceased, we caught sight of two lakes, the smaller of which,
Laugarvatn, had three large hot springs on its shores, which
sent up columns of steam.

The side of the mountain, along which our track lay,
resembled an immense ash-heap, and I was glad to turn my
eyes from it to the landscape that now opened to our view ;
all the valley near the lakes was covered with grass, on which
many cattle and sheep were feeding ; the sun was again shining
brightly, and a party on their way to Reykjavik could be seen
winding their way up the mountain-side, while^ the columns
of steam continuously bursting forth from the hot springs

Haymaking. 1 9

seemed to invest the whole scene with an activity which would
otherwise have been wanting.

On nearing the base of the RejrSarbarmr we turned out
of our way to visit a cave in the mountain's side, which is
used by the farmers as a sheep-shelter during the long winter
months ; it is fifteen feet wide at the principal entrance, five
feet high, and runs back for a hundred paces. While I was
taking the measurements, some sheep which were in the dark
end of the cave, began rushing about, and startled me consider-
ably; they eventually bolted out by a small hole that had
escaped my notice. Our guide said that the cave was exten-
sive, but it was so pitch dark that I could not venture to ex-
plore it farther without a light. After riding round the north
shore of Laugarvatn, close to one of the hot springs, we
arrived at a farm-house, Katfstindar, where we halted to
change horses. An old man came from the farm and
apologised for having no skyr to give us, owing to its having
all been sent to the people who were making hay at some
distance off; he, however, brought us a large bowl of fresh
milk, and with that and some biscuits we made a very good
meal.

As haymaking is the most important industry of the rural
population of Iceland, it may not be out of place here to give
some account of the manner in which it is performed. It
commences as soon as ever the grass is of sufficient length to
cut, say two inches ; in some seasons this will be the case in
June, sometimes much later. It is a continuous process,
generally lasting until the end of September. A good hay-
meadow in Iceland is a. very different thing from an English
one. It looks for all the world like a churchyard overcrowded
with graves, with the tombstones removed ; it is, in short,
a succession of mounds, varying from one to three feet in
height, and about six feet long. The illustration of Hagaey
(p. 46) will give a very fair notion of the appearance of one

c 2

20 Summer Travelling in Iceland.

of these meadows. The mounds are evidently caused by
subsidence, and wherever they are found in Iceland the grass
is good and kept for hay. The mowers have short scythes with
straight stiff handles ; they walk round the mounds, shaving
them as they go : the grass is picked up by the women in
their hands and carried in bundles to a level place, where it is
spread out to dry. Some of this hay has to be brought by
horses, in boxes made for the purpose, a distance of twenty
miles out of the mountains, each horse carrying about
150 lbs. It must be remembered that there are no roads in
Iceland, and if there were, there are but very few carts, none
on the farms. The average cut of hay is much the same
length as the ordinary mowing of an English gentleman's
lawn, and it is no uncommon sight to see a haymaking party
returning with their loads in the midst of a heavy snowstorm
with the thermometer below freezing point. It is on such
hay as this, made under such difficulties of circumstances
and climate, that the lives of thousands of sheep and cattle
depend during the long winter months. Only the best of
the horses get any hay; the others have to look out for
themselves, with an occasional feed of dried seaweed or cod-
fish. When we left Reykjavik they were busy collecting
seaweed for this purpose, as the hay-crop had been very bad.

But to return to our journey. After the usual halt of
an hour we were off again, and, taking a trail to the south
of the church-farm of Mi^dalr, through a country which
must at times be impassable on account of the numerous
streams becoming combined, in wet weather, into one great
river, we at length arrived at the Brtiara (Bridge River),
which is worthy of some special notice. At the place we
passed it is from 150 to 200 feet broad, and rushes with great
speed over a lava bed full of nasty cracks. Owing to the
season having been a dry one, there was not much water in
the river ; if there had been, we could never have crossed it.

Arrival at the ^^ Gey sirs ^ 21

In the middle of the river bed there is a chasm, down which
the water dashes with tremendous force ; how deep it is
I do not know, as it is full of foaming water ; but it is five
feet wide, and this is spanned by a very rickety bridge. As
I crossed it on my horse, I could not help thinking what the
consequences would be, should one of the light planks of
which it is composed give way ; or should the horse become
frightened and make a slip. Winding round to the south of
Bjarnarfell, and fording some of the minor affluents of the
T(inguflj6t, to the north of that river, we arrived at Geysir
at 8.30 P.M., having travelled a distance of forty miles from
our last resting-place at l^fngvellir. We pitched our tent at
the foot of the cone of Great Geysir, and utilised the hot
spring Blesi for cooking our supper. Geysir gave us some
false alarms during the night, but we were soon sound asleep,
having determined to make a thorough survey of this won-
derful system on the morrow, the results of which I will give
in my next chapter.

22 Summer Travelling in Iceland.

CHAPTER III.

The " Geysirs " — General Description — Great Geysir — Mode of taking
Soundings^ &*c. — Analysis of the Water— Strokkr^How to cause an
Eruption — Fearful Appearance — Blesi^ the Traveller's Friend — Little
Geysir — A Dangerous Duty — Supposed Connection between these Springs
— Unappreciated Melody — The Gullfoss.

August "jth. — It was very early in the morning, though
broad daylight, and I was deliberating as to whether I should
get up or take another nap, when the matter was settled by a
loud subterraneous explosion which shook the ground ; this,
coupled with Zoega's cries of " Gentlemen ! Gentlemen !
Geysir, he go off,** soon brought us all out of the tent, but
only to witness an abortive attempt on the part of Geysir to
exhibit his powers.

I ascended the hill, Langafjall, at the base of which Geysir
is situated, for a short distance, to take a view of the sur-
rounding country, previous to making a survey of the springs.
The morning was cold and dull, but the atmosphere was ver}'
clear, and with the aid of my binocular, I was able to com-
mand a very extensive view. Directly beneath and in front
of me lay this wonderful system of hot springs, sending up
clouds of vapour; at times fiercely, as if some great con-
vulsion of nature were imminent, at other times languidly, as
if exhausted by its long-sustained efforts ; then suddenly, and
without any warning, two or three of the springs would burst
into a violent state of ebullition, and continue to rage and
boil in a manner frightful to behold. In the valley below
ran the Tungufljot and three of its affluents. On the other
side of the river, as far as the eye cpuld reach, green swamps

The *' Gey sir s''^ — General Description. 23

alternated with chocolate-coloured barren wastes ; to the left,
the church-farm Haukadalr could be seen standing in the
middle of the bright-green "tun'* (home meadow), while
the dark and threatening clouds which overhung Bjarnar-
fell showed out by contrast its snow-covered sides and top.
To the south-east numerous small farms were in sight, and a
mountain, Berghylsffjall, which must have been at least ten
miles distant, seemed to be only about half an hour's walk
from where I stood. The wind was blowing freshly from the
north-east and was bitterly cold, so I returned to the tent
and found that the people from the neighbouring farm had
brought a supply of skyr and cream, with which, and some
of the stores we had brought with us, we made a capital
breakfast.

I will now endeavour to give some account of the hot
springs commonly known as the ^' Geysirs." This name, how-
ever, as applied to the whole system, is not correct ; there is
only one Geysir, and the other springs have each their proper
name, or are spoken of as " Laug " and " Hver."

These springs are continually undergoing changes, and I
have no doubt that an account of them, which would be
strictly correct for one year, would be found to contain many
inaccuracies in the year following. The annexed plan, to
which the reader is referred as illustrating the following
remarks, was accurate at the time when the survey was taken,
and, as regards its main features, is likely to remain so for
years ; nevertheless it is quite possible that in some of the
minor details it may even now be in fault.

The plain on which this system of hot springs exists
slopes gradually to the S.S.E. {true). Geysir is by far
the largest of the series ; a cone, or more properly speak-
ing a mound, created by the deposition of the substances
held in solution by the water, rises to the height of
twelve feet above the general surface of the surrounding

24 Summer Travelling in Iceland,

country. At the top of this is its basin, fifty-six feet in its
greatest diameter, and fort)'-nine feet in its least, having a
probable depth of four feet at the rim of the circular funnel
situated in the centre of the basin, which we found to be
ten feet in diameter, and seventy-eight feet deep. The
soundings were obtained in the manner shown in the illus-
tration, and attached to the weight, at the end of the
sounding-line, was a registering thermometer, specially con-
structed for this sort of work by Elliott, Brothers, of Charing
Cross, from a design of Mr. Delmar Morgan's, to whose
forethought we were indebted for this instrument. We
found the temperature at the bottom to be 228° F., and
experienced some difficulty in getting our sounding-line to
the bottom. The measurements across the base of the cone,
taken at right angles to one another, were 10 1 yards and
75 yards respectively. The deposit close to the edge of the
basin was so hard, that it was almost impossible to detach
even the smallest fragment with a geologist's hammer ; lower
down the side of the cone, large pieces could be broken off
and pulverised with the hands. While Geysir is in a state of
rest, a small channel on the western side serves to carry off
the surplus water, but as soon as the subterraneous explosions
commence, which is about once in six hours, the water over-
flows the basin on all sides, but especially by the outfalls,
shown in the plan, on the eastern side of the cone. The
mineral contents of a gallon of the water of this spring have
been found by analysis to be soda, 5*56 gr. ; alumina, 2*80 gr.;
silica, 31*38 gr. ; muriate of soda, 14*42 gr. ; sulphate of
soda, 8-57 gr.

We were told that just before our arrival Geysir had been
very active, sending up a jet of water for more than one
hundred feet, but he did not seem disposed to give us any
great exhibition of his powers ; the greatest height to which he
threw water, during our stay, was six feet, and he made a

Great Gey sir — Strokkr. 25

tremendous fuss about doing that. Our guide had not given
us any warning about the overflow which always follows an
explosion; so just as we had finished taking our measure-
ments and soundings, the mysterious booming sounds began,
the water rose so rapidly in the basin that it came rushing
over, and we had just time to run down the sides of the
cone followed by streams of boiling water. jSpeaking for
myself, I may say that I felt quite astonished at the activity I
displayed, and I shall ever believe that there is no place in
the world where a man can run so fast as on the sides of the
cone of great Geysir, especially if he happens to have been
taken by surprise in the manner we were.

The spring next in importance is Strokkr {the chum)^
which is always prepared to display its powers when properly
called on to do so. The mode of treatment, in order to get
a satisfactory exhibition, is to feed it with a barrow-full of
turf. This is thrown down the circular hole, ten feet in
diameter, and forty-two feet deep, and after remaining there
from five, to forty minutes, is suddenly ejected by a column
of boiling water, which sometimes attains a height of more
than one hundred feet ; the eruption continues from three to
fifteen minutes. An exhibition of this kind can always be
obtained by feeding it in the manner described, but the
height to which water is thrown varies considerably. It is
well for those who visit Strokkr to beware of his very sudden
movements, as on one occasion, after having been fed, and
just after we had withdrawn from the edge of the hole, it,
without the slightest warning, shot a column of water one
hundred feet into the air. The force and rapidity with which
the water and clods of turf were ejected reminded me more of
the sudden ascent of a rocket than anything else, and as the
temperature of the water before being ejected is 228° F.,
it would make short work of any one whom it might chance
to strike in its upward rush. Strokkr is a fearful place to

2.6 Summer Travelling in Iceland.

look down, the water boils and rages at the bottom of the
tube, and the partial escape of steam every now and then
makes the most unearthly noises.

The next important spring is Blesi, which has a double
basin connected by a narrow channel. This may truly be
called the traveller's fi-iend, as it saves him, during his whole
stay, the trouble of making a fire. The water is beautifully
clear, and 20 feet deep; during our stay it was never in a
violent state of ebullition, but was several times slightly

A Dangerous Duty. 27

moved when either Greysir or Strokkr erupted. Its dimen-
sions are as follows : — south basin, longest diameter, 30 feet,
shortest, 20 feet; north basin, longest diameter, 18 feet,
shortest, 1 2 feet. During our stay we cooked everything in
this spring; some plover which we tied up in a cloth and
lowered into the large basin, were thoroughly cooked in
twenty minutes, though the temperature of the water was
never more than 180° F.; it also made capital tea, but I
noticed that after using it, in cleaning my teeth, there was a
sweet taste left in the mouth, much like that which I have
experienced after drinking the alkali-waters in North-west
America. The overflow from this spring joins that of
Geysir, the bed of the stream being in places covered with
bright yellow and red deposits.

Half-way between Geysir and the extensive system of
small springs included in the plan between the letters A, B, R,
is situated one, called by our guide Little Geysir, which be-
haved at times in a most spasmodic manner, ejecting water to
the height of 18 feet, the column being about 8 inches in
diameter.

Mr. Peek and myself spent the greater part of two days in
measuring bases and taking angles, in order to fix the rela-
tive positions of these springs ; and we experienced consider-
able difficulty in doing so, as the vapour which rises from the
numerous springs obscures the vision, and so affects the lenses
or reflectors of the instruments used for surveying, that it was
only with the greatest difficulty, and by my friend actually
writing a number on each spring, that we were enabled to
recognise them again for the purpose of taking angles.

Mr. Peek acted as a station-mark when surveying the
system of small springs, a duty not unattended with risk and
discomfort, for the steam was so blinding, and the noise so
conftising, that a person who was not particularly careftil
would be nearly sure to walk into one of them, and such an

28 Summer Travelling in Iceland.

accident would, in all probability, be a fatal one ; there was
also considerable danger of the crust between these springs
giving way and precipitating him into the superheated water
below. However, with care and patience all the necessary
angles were taken without any mishap, and it is from these
that the plan has been drawn.

From reports of travellers at the commencement of this
century, it would seem that these springs are by no means so
active now as they were then, and there also appear to have
been considerable changes in their number and positions.
From observations which we made during our stay here, I am
led to the conclusion that all these springs are connected : for
instance, when Geysir overflowed it emptied Strokkr, and we
always noticed that Blesi began to send up bubbles just before
either Geysir or Strokkr displayed their powers. This is of
course conjecture, but I fail to see how this simultaneous
movement could take place unless the same motive power
acted on all these springs alike. I know that this theory has
been contradicted, but I fear that it must remain an unsettled
question until Geysir becomes more cool, and Strokkr less
hasty in his behaviour : then, and not till then, can the
question be settled by sinking a shaft between the two great
springs.

In the immediate vicinity of Geysir there is but little
vegetation ; but the surrounding district, from an Icelandic
point of view, is considered to be a good grass country. It
was also noticeable that the cotton-grass {Eriophorum an-
gusti/olium)^ which flourishes in almost all the swampy places
throughout the island, is entirely absent from the ground
kept moist by the water of these springs.

By eight o'clock in the evening we had fairly earned our
dinner. Morgan, who had assisted us in taking measurements
in the morning, had been out with his gun in the afternoon,
and returned with some golden plover and curlew. Blesi

Unappreciated Melody. 29

stood our friend and cooked the dinner : we converted our
pack-boxes into a dining-table, and, everything being ready,
we all fell to with a will and soon cleared the table. The tent
was then prepared for sleeping, and after a post-prandial pipe
and a short yarn, we rolled ourselves up in our blankets,
having first, one and all, promised that we would arouse one
another, should there be any signs of an eruption of Geysir.
I had just closed my eyes and was on the point of falling
asleep, when my attention was arrested by a peculiar moan-
ing sound. I sat up to listen, and finding that my com-
panions were awake, I asked them if they could account
for it; but no, they could not, and I think it would have
been next thing to a miracle if they could, so unlike was
it to anything that I have ever heard. It became louder,
and I fancied proceeded from some place close to the men's
tent, so, determined to settle the matter, Ishouted out —

'^ Zoega !

" Yes, sir.'

" Do you hear that awful noise ?"

*^ No, sir ; I not hear noise.**

" Why, good gracious ! it's going on close to you. Don't
you hear it now ? "

" No, sir ; I not hear it ; I only hear Evandr, he sing."

" Oh! that's Evandr singing, is it? "

" Yes, sir."

" Then pray ask him not to sing any more to-night."

With this request Evandr complied ; he was, I believe,
considered by his fellow-guides to be a talented vocalist, but
I must confess that I did not appreciate his vocal powers;
his performance, to my untrained ear, sounded much like
the distant bellowing of a discontented bull, only not quite
so musical. Having quieted Evandr, I again began to doze :
but the night was cold, and I had foolishly come unpro-
vided with blankets, and my thin railway wrapper proved

»»

30 Summer Travelling in Iceland.

to be an insufficient covering ; at any rate I could not go
to sleep. I had lain in this way for some time, listening
to the incessant grumbling of Strokkr and the occasional
snores of Evandr, who, after his fashion, was musical even in
his sleep, when a tremendous subterraneous explosion took
place, which sounded like the distant report of heavy artillery,
and shook the whole tent ; I began calling to my companions
to get up, as Geysir was going to erupt. It was, however,
another false alarm, and, having been furnished with a
blanket, I was soon fast asleep.

On the morning of August 8th, we started for the
GuUfoss {Gold'/orce), one of the largest waterfalls in Ice-
land. It is about ten miles distant from Geysir, and as we
intended returning to our tent we only took our saddle-
horses with us. Immediately after starting we had to ford
the Tdngufljot, but before reaching the main river, which
was both deep, rapid, and very cold, we had to cross some
of its affluents, in one of which Zoega's horse got into a
quicksand and gave him a ducking, besides breaking its
crupper in its endeavours to extricate iteelf. He was riding
close beside me when all of a sudden his horse went down as
if the earth had been taken away from under him ; the water
was not deep, or it might have been a nasty affair for
him. After crossing some sandy hills we came upon a suc-
cession of swamps, through which the horses with difficulty
picked their way. I left my little animal entirely to himself,
and it was most amusing to see the care he took in picking
out the sound places. I always followed this plan when I was
riding him, and he never once brought me to grief. In an
hour and a half we began to hear the distant thunders of the
fall, and could see the mist rising up like a column of steam ;
but no river was in sight. In a short time we came to the
edge of a cation, and the whole river burst upon our view,
and a grand sight it was. To our left the broad Hvita

The Gullfoss. 31

{White River) came rushing along between the mountains
on either side, in a succession of rapids, until it reached a
precipice 150 yards broad and 90 feet deep, over which it
dashed in a foaming mass ; another short rapid, and with a
leap of seventy feet it reached the bottom of the gorge
below. Our guide told us that in ancient times criminals
were punished for certain offences by being thrown into this
river just above the falls.

On our way back, in trying to make a short cut, we got
into a bog, and Peek's horse stuck fast, but on his dismounting
it struggled out, and without further incident we arrived safely
at the camp, and occupied ourselves until dark in completing
our survey.

From observations of the sun's true azimuth we found
the error of our compass to be 39° W., and the approximate
dip of the magnetic needle 81°. The minimum temperature
during our stay here was 41° F, and the weather variable.

3 a Summer Travelling in Icelami..

CHAPTER IV.

Starting for Hekla — Civility of the Peasants — Fording the Hvitd—A
Farmer's Library — Hruni — Icelandic Sheep — Pfbrsdrholt — A Natural
Vapour Bath — Galtalcekr — Hekla — Magnificent View — An Unpleasant
Position,

At eight o'clock on the morning of August 8th, we struck
our tent preparatory to setting out for Hekla. The horses
had been packed and saddled, and it only remained for us to
put on our long boots and mount our horses and start ; but
this business of putting on our boots was, in the case of Peek
and myself, no joke. They had been hard enough to get on
when perfectly dry, but now that they had become damp
from yesterday's ride through the rivers, the task seemed to
be hopeless. Get them on, however, we must, for we had
several rivers to ford ; so we set to work with a will. I
selected a block of lava to kick, and kipked and tugged, and
tugged again, but without success. I was, however, greatly
encouraged by observing that Peek had already managed to
get one boot on, and that he was continuing his frantic and
determined efforts, with the undiminished energy that insures
success. At length, when I had all but given up hope, Zoega
advised the free use of soap on the inside of my boots, and
acting on his suggestion, I was fortunate enough, after a tre-
mendous effort, to succeed in getting them on. This
abominable tussle with my boots was repeated every morning,
and certainly tired me more than a twenty miles' ride. Evandr
and Ziggi, after having been highly entertained for a quarter of
an hour by our struggles, had left with the pack-train, and at
9.30 we mounted and trotted after them. For a short distance
we followed the same route as yesterday, then turning to the

On the way to Hekla. 33

south we travelled along the right bank of the HvftS, over a
country in which stony hills alternated with extensive grassy
morasses. We were overtaken by a heavy storm of wind and
sleet, which latter made parts of the trail so greasy that the
horses had some difficulty in. keeping their foothold, especially
when descending the short but steep hills. Crossing the
morasses was also rather unpleasant ; there were no trails or
marks to point out the way, and the guides knew very little
about them ; we had therefore to trust to the instinct of our
horses, and they, poor beasts, were evidently quite alive to
their danger, and therefore very careful in feeling their way,
but with every trust in their sagacity there was a feeling of
insecurity. I afterwards got quite accustomed to these places,
and took very little notice of them when riding one of my
4iorses ; the other was a stupid beast, and would soon have
brought me to grief, if I had let him have his own way.

We passed several farms, where all were busy in the sleet
and rain cutting the grass. These people always saluted us by
taking off their h^ts to us as we passed, not at all in a servile
manner, for this custom obtains among themselves ; and if
we halted near them, they came to shake hands with us. This
hand-shaking we found to be a very general custom; it is
always observed when money is paid or given ; even small
children, on receiving a present, will invariably put out their
little hands to be shaken. All the people we spoke to were
ready to give any information in their power, and would leave
their work to point out the best way across a swamp ; I have
indeed never met with so much civility from the same class of
people in any other country in which I have travelled.

At 12.30 we had reached the place where we were to
cross the Hvfta, and Evandr was sent to a church-farm,
Brae^rattinga, to procure a guide who was acquainted with the
ford ; he soon returned with a man who engaged to show us the
way for a kroner.

34 Summer Travelling in Icecana.

The Hvft4 is one of the worst rivers in Iceland to ford,
and indeed, except in dry seasons, is unfordable at the place
where we passed. The width from bank to bank is about
half-a-mile, but when we were there it was divided into three
main channels by sand-banks. It is a glacier river, and its
water, which has a chalky appearance, is icy cold. The
stream is rapid, and sufficiently deep in some parts of the
ford to reach well up our saddle-flaps; the bed is full of
those quicksands which make all the rivers of Iceland so dan-
gerous. If any one should be so unfortunate as to ride into
one of these quicksands in such a river as the Hvft4, he would
run a very considerable risk of losing his life ; his only chance
would be to cling to his horse, as the low temperature of the
glacier water would soon paralyse the efforts of even the best
swimmer, while the swiftness of the stream would in all pro-
bability prevent him from ever gaining a footing, should he
lose his hold of the horse. To add to the difficulties of these
fords, they are continually changing, so that it is only the
local guides who have any real knowledge of them, and
even people living in the immediate vicinity are sometimes
drowned, owing to the sudden changes which take place in
the river.

Two miles above the place where we crossed, there is a
ferry-boat, but the time it would take to unpack our horses,
swim them to the other bank, and then put the packs on
again, would have been so great, that we determined to adopt
the more expeditious method of fording. The horses were
tied together in threes, the head of one being secured to
the tail of the other by a piece of thin rope fastened round the
lower jaw. Previous to starting, the local guide warned us as
to the necessity of following exactly on his track, and then,
mounted on his stout little horse, and leading three of the
pack-animals that had been tied together in the manner
described, he descended the steep banks, while we, with shouts

Fording the Hvitd. 35

- — -- -■■ ... ^.. .. .^. j»— .

and much cracking of whips urged our unwilling beasts forward
into the river. We were soon in the rushing water, and
had extended into a long line, following the guide in Indian
file : the whirl of the river and the splashing and plunging
of the horses was very confusing. In crossing narrow
streams, a certain amount of steadiness is gained by fixing
the eye on some object on the opposite bank, but in our
case it was so far off that no such mark was available;
besides which, the ford was not in a direct Hne across the river,
but lay in a series of zig-zags, any departure from which
we were warned would probably be fatal to us. For the first
two hundred yards the direction taken was down the stream at
only a small angle from the bank, and here the water came
half-way up our saddle^flaps, until the guide having reached a
more shallow place, faced round and led us up the stream,
edging over to the other shore ; this mode of progression was
repeated several times. To follow a long string of horses
across such a ford as this, so as to keep accurately in the track
of the guide, would at first sight seem to be almost impossible,
but we were not long in discovering that the older and steadier
pack-horses, by some natural instinct, seemed to be well aware
of their danger, on this and the like occasions, and were careful
not to go either to the right or left until they had reached
the exact points where the guide had turned, and by following
these we were enabled to keep pretty accurately in the proper
track. On one occasion — ^which I shall mention further on
' — when the guide was in fault, one of these pack-horses found
the ford, and by following him we were saved from what
might have been a very serious mishap.

After zig-zagging about for a quarter of an hour, we at last
arrived at the farther bank without accident, and I doubt not
that my companions were as glad as myself; for sitting with
one's feet in glacier water for that space of time was not
pleasant. The place where we, landed was a large swamp, and

D 2

36 Summer Travelling in Iceland.

where it would otherwise have been impassable, a narrow
causeway of turf had been erected; it was about 4 feet
wide at the top, and 8 feet high. The manner in which
the horses struggled with one another to prevent being pushed
off into the swamp reminded me of the game of " King of
the Castle," which boys used to play. One horse did get
pushed off all but his fore-feet, but managed to scramble up
again without any assistance.

At one o'clock; arriving at a farm, we stopped to change
horses and get our mid-day meal of skyr, coffee, and black
bread. In the room where we were sitting I noticed a book-
shelf, and being curious to know the kind of literature which
found favour with the small farmer of this country, I took a
book down, when, to my astonishment, I found it to be a
Danish edition of Lockyer's * Solar Physics.' Our host, an
elderly man, who had just come in fi'om his work, was good
enough to show me some other books in his small collection,
amongst which were some of the works of Darwin and
Lardner; he had also a Virgil. They had evidently been
well used, and so far as I could understand him, he seemed
to be well acquainted with their contents. I was afterwards
informed that it is by no means uncommon in Iceland to come
across men of this class who are extremely well-read scholars.
After resting an hour, we were off again; the country
through which we passed was a good deal like the South
Downs, near Brighton, except that the hills were higher. In
one of the valleys ran the Minni-Lax4 (Little Salmon
River), which we forded without difficulty. This seems to
be a great sheep country, for we could see them in every
direction, and a good many cattle grazing in the swamps.

As we came in sight of Hruni, the weather cleared up,
and the sun shone out brightly, lighting up the green hills
on which a party of men and women were hard at work hay-
making. We could just hear their voices, singing at their

Icelandic Sheep. 37

work ; and I think that, with the little church and home*
stead close to us, the sheep on the hills, and the cattle in the
valley, it was as charming a picture of peaceful rural life
as I have ever set eyes on, while the surrounding verdure
seemed to protest against this country being called by such
an uninviting name as Iceland

We had intended to stop the night at Hruni, but
having yet several hours of daylight, we made up our minds
to push on for fj6rsdrholt, eight miles distant. Soon after
leaving Hruni we crossed the Laxa, a river of some size,
but easily forded, as the bottom is sound and there was no
great depth of water when we were there. This was once,
as its name indicates, a fine salmon river ; but, in common
with all the salmon rivers of Iceland, it is being ruined by
the reckless system of netting and trapping universally
adopted by the riparian owners. As we advanced the hills
became higher with less grass on them, and from the top
of one we had a fine view of the valley of the i*j6rsa, and
the river itself winding through, what appeared to be, a good
grass country to the sea.

Shortly before reaching tjorsdrholt we turned aside to
examine one of the places where the sheep are collected
before the winter sets in; and as these are the Iceland
farmer's mainstay, I will here give some account of the
manner in which he deals with his flock. All through the
long winter months he has to keep his sheep closely packed
in turf huts or caves, and feed them with hay, this, indeed,
being his only occupation at that season ; hence the energy
displayed in haymaking, for without an adequate supply of
this article he would infallibly lose his flock. In May he
turns them out and allows them to wander wherever they
please, only keeping some of the ewes at home for dairy
purposes, as nearly all the butter and cheese is made from
sheep's milk. The distance the sheep wander from home is

Summer Travelling in Iceland.

very great ; I have seen them in the most desolate places, as
far as sixty miles firom the nearest farm, and perhaps nearly
double that distance from their owners. EUirly in September
all the farmers assemble with their dogs, and scour the country
in quest of sheep, driving all they find before them into the
collecting place. It is probable that thb general hunt would
commence earlier in the season, were it not for the impossi-
bility of getting the sheep, which are wonderful climbers, out
of the mountains until they are forced by the snow to seek
for food in the vallep. The folds into which the sheep are
driven are of the form shown in the cut, the walls being

MO YARDS

ii/^.

generally built of turf. The sheep are first driven into the
central enclosure, then each farmer selects those which bear
his mark, and places them in one of the side enclosures ;
when each has gi>t his own, he removes them to the
shtHls on his iarrn. This process is continued until all
the sheep have Ixcn got in. As the marks of each farmer
are pretty well known, due notice is sent to the owners if any
belonging to another di.tria have Ixvn driven in, and in this
x>ay « seldom hapinns that many sluxp arc lost. Sometimes,

A natural Vapour Bath. 39

however, sheep are found that have no mark, and which no
one can own ; these are sold by auction, and the proceeds of
the sale are given to the widows of the district.

We arrived at fj6rsarholt at 8 p.m., having travelled a
distance of 40 miles in ten hours and a half, including halts.
This may be taken as the usual rate of progress in Iceland,
with a large number of pack-horses, unless there is some object
to be gained by traveling at greater speed ; for long journeys,
however, this is quite fast enough, as the horses only get what
they can pick up, and where grass is scarce they have to walk
a long way, after they are turned loose, before they can get
sufficient to satisfy their hunger ; besides which, fast travelling
with pack-horses is sure to end in their getting sore backs, and
this renders them useless, or should do so, to any merciful
man.

We pitched our tent in the most level place we could
find, and I set out in search of a natural vapour-bath not
far from the farm. I had left England with a bad cough,
and sleeping on the ground without sufficient covering had
not improved it. I was also beginning to feel some rheu-
matic twinges, and hearing of this bath from the guide, I
determined to test its efficacy. I soon found it at about a
quarter of a mile from the farm ; it is a rude turf hut, about
six feet long by three broad, and four feet high, inside mea-
surements, which has been built over a small fissure in the
rock, from which the steam issues. I undressed and crept in
through the hole which answered for a doorway, and sitting
down on a wooden bench, over the fissure, closed the entrance
with a plank which had been left there for that purpose. I
was in utter darkness, and the roaring of the hot spring over
which I was seated caused me some misgivings, when I re-
membered the spouting performances of Strokkr ; being, how-
ever, determined to give its curative powers a fair trial, I
remained in the hut until I felt very nearly boiled, and then

Summer Travelling in Iceland,

very great ; I have seen them in the most desolate places, as
far as sixty miles from the nearest farm, and perhaps nearly
double that distance from their owners. Early in September
all the farmers assemble with their dogs, and scour the country
in quest of sheep, driving all they find before them into the
collecting place. It is probable that this general hunt would
commence earlier in the season, were it not for the impossi-
bility of getting the sheep, which are wonderful climbers, out
of the mountains until they are forced by the snow to seek
for food in the valleys. The folds into which the sheep are
driven are of the form shown in the cut, the walls being

Plan of Iceland Sheepfold.

generally built of turf. The sheep are first driven into the
central enclosure, then each farmer selects those which bear
his mark, and places them in one of the side enclosures ;
when each has got his own, he removes them to the
sheds on his farm. This process is continued until all
the sheep have been got in. As the marks of each farmer
are pretty well known, due notice is sent to the owners if any
belonging to another district have been driven in, and in this
way it seldom happens that many sheep are lost. Sometimes,

A natural Vapour Bath. 39

■ - , - . . . .

however, sheep are found that have no mark, and which no
one can own ; these are sold by auction, and the proceeds of
the sale are given to the widows of the district.

We arrived at fj6rs4rholt at 8 p.m., having travelled a
distance of 40 miles in ten hours and a half, including halts.
This may be taken as the usual rate of progress in Iceland,
with a large number of pack-horses, unless there is some object
to be gained by travelling at greater speed ; for long journeys,
however, this is quite fast enough, as the horses only get what
they can pick up, and where grass is scarce they have to walk
a long way, after they are turned loose, before they can get
sufficient to satisfy their hunger ; besides which, fast travelling
with pack-horses is sure to end in their getting sore backs, and
this renders them useless, or should do so, to any merciful
man.

Summer Travelling hi Iceland,

Plan of Iceland Sheepfold.

generally built of turf. The sheep are first driven into the
central enclosure, then each farmer selects those which bear
his mark, and places them in one of the side enclosures ;
when each has got his own, he removes them to the
sheds on his farm. This process is continued until all
the sheep have been got in. As the marks of each farmer
are pretty well known, due notice is sent to the owners if any
belonging to another district have been driven in, and in this
way it seldom happens that many sheep are lost. Sometimes,

A natural Vapour Bath. 39

^ M I »i ■ . I- » ■ ■ ■ I ■ ■ I ■

however, sheep are found that have no mark, and which no
one can own ; these are sold by auction, and the proceeds of
the sale are given to the widows of the district.

We arrived at fj6rs^rholt at 8 p.m., having travelled a
distance of 40 miles in ten hours and a half, including halts.
This may be taken as the usual rate of progress in Iceland,
with a large number of pack-horses, unless there is some object
to be gained by travelling at greater speed ; for long journeys,
however, this is quite fast enough, as the horses only get what
they can pick up, and where grass is scarce they have to walk
a long way, after they are turned loose, before they can get
sufficient to satisfy their hunger ; besides which, fast travelling
with pack-horses is sure to end in their getting sore backs, and
this renders them useless, or should do so, to any merciful
man.

Summer Travelling in Iceland,

very great; I have seen them in the most desolate places, as
far as sixty miles from the nearest farm, and perhaps nearly
double that distance from their owners. Early in September
all the farmers assemble with their dogs, and scour the country
in quest of sheep, driving all they find before them into the
collecting place. It is probable that this general hunt would
commence earlier in the season, were it not for the impossi-
bility of getting the sheep, which are wonderful climbers, out
of the mountains until they are forced by the snow to seek
for food in the valleys. The folds into which the sheep are
driven are of the form shown in the cut, the walls being

Plan of Iceland Sheepfold.

generally built of turf. The sheep are first driven into the
central enclosure, then each farmer selects those which bear
his mark, and places them in one of the side enclosures ;
when each has got his own, he removes them to the
sheds on his farm. This process is continued until all
the sheep have been got in. As the marks of each farmer
are pretty well known, due notice is sent to the owners if any
belonging to another district have been driven in, and in this
way it seldom happens that many sheep are lost. Sometimes,

A natural Vapour Bath. 39

however, sheep are found that have no mark, and which no
one can own ; these are sold by auction, and the proceeds of
the sale are given to the widows of the district.

We arrived at tjorsdrholt at 8 p.m., having travelled a
distance of 40 miles in ten hours and a half, including halts.
This may be taken as the usual rate of progress in Iceland,
with a large number of pack-horses, unless there is some object
to be gained by travelling at greater speed ; for long journeys,
however, this is quite fast enough, as the horses only get what
they can pick up, and where grass is scarce they have to walk
a long way, after they are turned loose, before they can get
sufficient to satisfy their hunger ; besides which, fast travelling
with pack-horses is sure to end in their getting sore backs, and
this renders them useless, or should do so, to any merciful
man.

We pitched our tent in the most level place we could
find, and I set out in search of a natural vapour-bath not
far fi-om the farm. I had left England with a bad cough,
and sleeping on the ground without sufficient covering had
not improved it. I was also beginning to feel some rheu-
matic twinges, and hearing of this bath from the guide, I
determined to test its efficacy. I soon found it at about a
quarter of a mile from the farm ; it is a rude turf hut, about
six feet long by three broad, and four feet high, inside mea-
surements, which has been built over a small fissure in the
rock, from which the steam issues. I undressed and crept in
through the hole which answered for a doorway, and sitting
down on a wooden bench, over the fissure, closed the entrance
with a plank which had been left there for that purpose. I
was in utter darkness, and the roaring of the hot spring over
which I was seated caused me some misgivings, when I re-
membered the spouting performances of Strokkr ; being, how-
ever, determined to give its curative powers a fair trial, I
remained in the hut until I felt very nearly boiled, and then

Summer Travelling in Iceland.

very great ; I have seen them in the most desolate places^ as
far as sixty miles from the nearest farm, and perhaps nearly
double that distance from their owners. Early in September
all the farmers assemble with their dogs, and scour the country
in quest of sheep, driving all they find before them into the
collecting place. It is probable that this general hunt would
commence earlier in the season, were it not for the impossi-
bility of getting the sheep, which are wonderful climbers, out
of the mountains until they are forced by the snow to seek
for food in the valleys. The folds into which the sheep are
driven are of the form shown in the cut, the walls being

Plan of Iceland Sheepfold.

generally built of turf. The sheep are first driven into the
central enclosure, then each farmer selects those which bear
his mark, and places them in one of the side enclosures;
when each has got his own, he removes them to the
sheds on his farm. This process is continued until all
the sheep have been got in. As the marks of each farmer
are pretty well known, due notice is sent to the owners if any
belonging to another district have been driven in, and in this
way it seldom happens that many sheep are lost. Sometimes,

A natural Vapour Bath. 39

however, sheep are found that have no mark, and which no
one can own ; these are sold by auction, and the proceeds of
the sale are given to the widows of the district.

We arrived at fj6rsarholt at 8 p.m., having travelled a
distance of 40 miles in ten hours and a half, including halts.
This may be taken as the usual rate of progress in Iceland,
with a large number of pack-horses, unless there is some object
to be gained by travelling at greater speed ; for long journeys,
however, this is quite fast enough, as the horses only get what
they can pick up, and where grass is scarce they have to walk
a long way, after they are turned loose, before they can get
sufficient to satisfy their hunger ; besides which, fast travelling
with pack-horses is sure to end in their getting sore backs, and
this renders them useless, or should do so, to any merciful
man.

40 Summer Travelling in Iceland.

hastily dressing, I ran as hard as I could to the tent, where I
found a supper, consisting of coffee, roast lamb, and skyr,
waiting, and was not long in doing my best to do justice to
the good fare ; shortly after I rolled myself up in my blankets
and slept soundly. Next morning my cough was nearly
gone, and though previously subject to somewhat severe
attacks of rheumatism, I have never since felt even the ghost
of a rheumatic pain. I am told that this is merely a coin-
cidence ; well, all I can say is that it has been a very happy
coincidence for me. The minimum temperature during the
night was 42° F, At half-past seven in the morning we
started for Hekla, in hopes of making the ascent and getting
back here by the evening. Immediately on leaving the camp
we had to cross the ij6rs^ which at this place is nearly half a
mile broad, and too deep to ford ; so the saddles were taken
off the horses and they were driven into the river to swim
across. The water was so cold, that I could not but pity the
poor beasts, who, however, seemed quite to understand what
was required of them ; and, after some little hesitation, plunged
into the stream and were swept a long way down by the cur-
rent before they reached the opposite bank. We crossed in
the ferry-boat which the farmer at fj6rsarholt is obliged to
provide for the use of travellers, and, having re-saddled, were
soon advancing at a rapid pace towards Hekla, whose snow-
capped summit, having three distinct peaks, was plainly to be
seen against the blue sky. After traversing a plain, thickly
covered with disintegrated lava, we rode on over undu-
lating grass-land intersected by lava beds, and arrived at the
farm of Galtaloekr at 10 a.m., where Jonson, the guide for
Hekla, lives : but he was absent from home and would not
be back until evening, and so we were obliged to await his
return.

This was the warmest day we experienced during our stay
in Iceland, the thermometer showing 80^ F. in the sun ; not

Galtalcekr. 4 1

a cloud was to be seen and the view from the farm was very
fine ; at one time we had four considerable mountains in sight,
viz., Hekla, Btirfell, Tindfjalla-jokuU, and Eyjafjalla-jokulL
Galtaloekr is seven miles from the base of Hekla, around
which are immense heaps of sand and slag, that have been
piled up at the times of its numerous eruptions, while lower
down it is encircled by huge lava-beds. I must, however,
confess that it was by no means so imposing an object as I
had expected to find it ; this was, of course, my own fault,
for a moment's thought would have reminded me that Hekla
owes its celebrity to its eruptions, and not to its altitude, in
which respect it sinks into utter insignificance when com-
pared with such volcanic mountains as Etna or Mount Baker.
At a short distance from the farm, an aflBuent of the Vestri-
Ringa tumbles in a pretty fall over the blocks of lava; it
has all the appearance of being a good trout stream, but
we were assured that none of the streams near Hekla had
any fish in them. To pass the time, I made a plan of the
homestead, and as it fairly represents the dwelling-place of a
well-to-do farmer in Iceland, the annexed sketch and plan
may not be uninteresting. Jonson had ornamented his
house outside with the bones of sheep's-legs, which were stuck
in layers round the door and window-frames ; he was evidently
a good carpenter and smith, for the guest-room was neatly
lined with boards, and one of the cups which were set before
us had been repaired by having a copper handle, the exact
shape of the original, neatly riveted on. At six o'clock
Jonson made his appearance, and after a good meal of coflfee,
skyr, black bread, and mutton, the room was cleared, and
Jonson's wife having made us three comfortable beds on the
floor, we turned in and enjoyed a capital night's rest.

At half-past six in the morning we started for Hekla, the
weather being beautifully fine ; besides Jonson, we took
Zoega and Ziggi with us, the latter to look after the horses

42 Summer Travelling in Iceland.

while we ascended the mountain. I was mounted on my
stupid horse, and in fording the Vestri-Ringi, which has
a very nigged bottom, it became frightened, and just as I
got midstream, stood stock still, and would not go either back-

& 10 20 YARDS.

Gallalwkr Farm — Front View and Ground Plun.

wards or forwards. When at last by dint of spurring I made
the beast move, it stumbled over a large stone, nearly pitching
me head first into the river and giving me a most uncom-
fortable wetting, as a strong breeze was blowing, and the
temperature was not many degrees above freezing. This
same horse, though good on dry land, was a constant source

Ascending Hekla. 43

of trouble when any rivers had to be forded, and I would
most strongly advise any intending traveller in Iceland, before
starting on his journey, to provide himself with two really
good strong horses, even if he has to pay a high price
for them. After crossing the river, lava became much
more plentiful, some of which, like that at tfngvellir, was
covered with a thick growth of grey moss : here and there
bright green patches of grass lay scattered on each side of
the sandy waste over which we were riding. In a short time
the patches of grass became less frequent, and large ash-hills
were to be seen in all directions. In this way we travelled on
for an hour and a half over old lava beds and ash-hills, until
we arrived at a farm which stands at the entrance of the pass
by which Hekla is approached; here there was plenty of
grass, and it is esteemed one of the best places for sheep in
the island, as in mild winters they are able to let them remain
in the open, and they find sufficient feed to keep life in them.
Passing on, we entered a gorge, and began steadily to ascend ;
the old lava over which we rode is full of holes, and as these
are hidden by the moss, the riding is somewhat dangerous ;
this was clearly proved to be the case by Peek's horse 'putting
his fore foot in one of them, and coming down as if he had
been shot, sending his rider over his head. Peek fortunately
fell clear of the sharp blocks of lava which stood up all round,
otherwise his fall might have been a very serious affair. We
soon had to dismount and lead our horses up one of the
hills of red sand by which we were now surrounded. On
arriving at the top we mounted again, and then, sometimes
walking, and sometimes riding, we reached an elevation of
2000 feet above sea-level ; here we left our horses in charge
of Ziggi, and began the ascent on foot.

We commenced by mounting a very steep hill for about
eighty yards, and then making a dive down an equally abrupt
descent, at the bottom of which there was a narrow bed of

44 Summer Travelling in Iceland.

vitrified lava, which stood up in ragged blocks from three to
six feet high, and, being nearly as brittle as glass, broke off as
one passed over them. Having crossed this, we reached
the slope of the mountain and commenced ascending at a
steep incline over loose stones, ashes, and sand much re-
sembling cinder-dust, a wall of lava on our left shutting out
all view of the country below. Our guide, who was known
as a very fast walker and practised mountaineer, insisted on
going at such a pace that it soon became quite evident to
my mind that neither Peek nor myself could keep up with
him. I had so much taken out of me in walking over the
steep sand-hills, that by the time I had passed the line of
perpetual snow by three hundred feet I was fairly outwalked,
and determined to go no farther. Morgan, being a better
walker, had been able to keep up with the guide, and he
went on, while Peek, Zoega, and myself, began slowly to
descend.

Though much disappointed in not reaching the summit
of Hekla, we were at least rewarded for our trouble by a most
magnificent view of the surrounding country. The sea, and
the Vestmanns Islands were clearly visible to the south ; to the
south-east, TindQalla, GoSalands, and Eyjafjalla-jokulls were
glittering in the sun ; to the west, just beyond the immense
streams of lava, which all seem to have flowed in a southerly
direction, the rivers Vestri-R4ng4 and i*j6rs4 looked like silver
threads as they wound their way through the sandy plains
towards the sea; Bdrfell and Hagaljall stood out sharply
to the north-west, and we could catch the glimmer of the
sun's rays on the distant glaciers of L4ng and Arnarfells-
jokuUs.

The ascent of Hekla is a mere matter of hard walking,
there being no actual climbing to be done, but owing to the
loose sand which has to be traversed before the snow line is
reached, it is a really arduous undertaking ; if, however, the

An Unpleasant Position. 45

guide could be persuaded to walk slowly at first, I believe
that almost any one could reach the top ; in our case, Jonson
fairly walked Peek and myself off our legs before we reached
the snow, where the easy walking commences.

On our way back to Galtaloekr my horse again got
frightened when fording the Vestri-Ringi, and tried to lie
down ; I, however, prevented his doing this, but not until he had
given me a good ducking. At three o'clock Morgan rejoined
us with the guide, having succeeded in reaching the summit
of Hekla, and boiling a thermometer there. At 4 p.m» we
saddled up and returned to our tent at i*j6rsarholt, having on
our way back been much troubled by dust-storms so dense
that, at a distance, they had the appearance of dark-brown
fog-banks, and, when close, nearly choked us.

46 Summer Travelling in Iceland.

CHAPTER V.

Hagaey — Asm^ndur, the Guide for Sprengisandr — Remarkable Hills —
RauVukambar — The Dust Nuisance-- View from Sandaf ell— Along the
Pj'Srsd — Cooking our Dinner — Swans— Jokull Rivers — Fording the Pjbrsd
— Eyvindarkofaver — Story of Eyvindar — Crossing the Sprengisandr —
An Icelandic Sonz — Lundarbrekka,

During the night the wind blew very hard, but our tent was
a good one, and kept us very comfortable. We got up early
and started for Hagaey, the farm where Asmtindur, the guide
for the Sprengisandr, lives. Our route was along the right
bank of the i>j6rs& ; we forded several of its affluents, and
passed close to the church-farm of St6rin6pr. I endeavoured
to measure the breadth of the river, which is here very wide,
running over a dark sandbank, but could only do so very
roughly, as our theodolite had gone on with the pack-train,
and it was impossible to get a base of sufficient length ; how-
ever, by using the pocket sextant, I found it to be about 640
yards. The day was fine but windy, and the clouds of dust
were very trying ; it was so penetrating that it found its way
into the cases of our instruments, and, before we could use
them, they had to be carefully wiped, or they would soon
have been ruined, for this dust was nearly as sharp as finely-
powdered glass. Even when there was no wind, the pack-
train, in trotting over the sand-plains, would raise such a cloud
of dust, that at times they were hidden from our sight, and
made it very disagreeable work to ride behind them.

At 10.30 A.M. we arrived at Hagaey, which is the last
farm on the south side of the Sprengisandr desert ; we had
come here early, it being necessary to have all the horses'
shoes looked to, as the loss of a shoe would, in all probability.

Hagaey. 47

entail the loss of a horse ; or, at any rate, its services, as it
would have been impossible for it to carry a load over the
sharp blocks of lava, unshod. At almost every farm there is

•

a smithy, and nearly every Icelander can fasten on a shoe,
but they are by no means good shoeing-smiths, and do their
work very insecurely. On this occasion, however, Asmdndur
was more than usually careful, probably on account of his
knowledge of the desert we had to traverse, and the trouble
that any carelessness might entail on himself. We took a
number of observations to fix the position of the farm, for,
finding the error of our prismatic compass, and the dip of the
magnetic needle, we then measured the width of the Ijorsa
with the aid of the theodolite, and found it to be 543 yards ;
our compass error was 39"^ west, and the approximate dip of
the needle 80°. In the evening I made a sketch of the home-
stead: the meadow in front of the house is a very fair
sample of the best kind of grass-land in Iceland.

Everything was packed overnight, and in order that no
delay might be caused by the time occupied in striking the
tent, we slept on the floor of the guest-chamber, which had
previously been well scrubbed by Mrs. Asmiindur. Before
turning in we had intended to try for some trout in the river,
but Zoega declared that there were none to be got larger than
his finger, so we took his word for it. I, however, noticed
that there was some fishing-tackle in the house, and think it
unlikely that Asmfindur would have provided himself with it
if there had been nothing worth fishing for.

At seven on the morning of August 13th, we left Hagaey
with its owner for a guide. I may here mention that there
are only two men in Iceland who will undertake to conduct a
party across the island by the Sprengisandr route ; one is a
farmer, whose name I forget, living in the north, the other
being the man whom we had engaged, and who had gained
his knowledge of the country in the pursuit of his calling as

48 Summer Travelling in Iceland.

a gatherer of Iceland moss ; he said that he had crossed the
island by this route fourteen times.

As soon as we set out, Asmtindur took command ; he
had provided himself with three good horses for the journey,
and kept galloping about and making a great deal of fuss
about everything ; he was an excellent guide, but was evi-
dently bent on impressing us with an idea of his importance.
This was so transparent, that our men used to laugh at him
for it. His mode of action was this : at any moment, and
without any apparent cause, he would gallop off for a mile
or so ahead ; would halt as suddenly as he had started ; and
then, after staring around him for a few moments, come
back again as if his life depended on the speed of his
horse. This seemed to ease his mind a good deal, and, as
he was riding his own horses, no one objected.

For the first two miles we followed up the right bank of
the i*j6rs^, until the river took a sharp bend round the foot
of Bdrfell ; here we left it, and, after ascending a steep hill,
continued to travel over sandy hills in a general north-easterly
direction for five miles, when we forded the Fossi, and, keep-
ing on its left bank, passed two remarkable hills which
the guide called the Great and Little Demon ; they had all
the appearance of columnar basalt, but as they were on the
other side of the river we could get no specimens of the rock.
Morgan attempted to do so, and got into a rather bad quick-
sand. The appearance of these hills was most peculiar ; the
base had the form of a number of rough columns, on the top
of which was piled a confused mass of rock of an apparently
different formation. We had now arrived at a most desolate-
looking place ; the whole surface of the country was covered
with dark sand, so fine that I think it might more properly
be called dust, with blocks of lava and pieces of pumice
scattered here and there. Previous to a.d. 1400 this was a
populous district, having its farms and forests of dwarf birch,

The Dust Nuisance. 49

but in that year a sudden eruption from a neighbouring
mountain, RauSukambar, took place, killing many of the
inhabitants, and reducing this once fertile district to its present
state of gloom and desolation. A little farther on we made
a halt of ten minutes to rest our horses, as travelling over
the deep loose sand had been very heavy work for the poor
beasts. Close to where we stopped were several conical sand-
hills, about 50 feet high ; they were so symmetrically formed,
and placed with such regularity, that they appeared much
more like the work of man's hands than that of Nature.
To our left, but at some distance off, we could see the falls
of the Fossd dashing over the dark rocks, and sending up
a cloud of mist ; not far from the falls a hot spring sent forth
jets of steam, and in the distance stood Rau^ukambar, look-
ing dark and gloomy. There were several other mountains
in sight ahead, all of which partook of the same dark hue as
the plain ; behind us we had Hekla and Bdrfell, which
appeared to be quite close, though in reality at a con-
siderable distance. A fresh breeze was blowing in our faces,
and the dust raised by the pack-train was a great nuisance :
it got into my eyes and nearly blinded me ; it got down my
throat and made me cough ; it got between my teeth and
made me feel as if I had breakfasted on mud- pie; it got
inside my clothing and made me think that I had uninten-
tionally been stealing some live stock from our last sleeping-
place : so uncomfortable did it make me, that, when it began
to rain later on in the day, I hailed the change in the weather
with delight, wet and cold being as nothing when compared
with the abominable discomfort caused by the dust. Of
course we might have avoided it, had we gone on in advance
of the pack-train ; but this we could not do as there was no
trail, and the guide, our commander-in-chief, would stay
behind with the other men to drive the horses : so we had
to make the best of it, taking care to keep as far behind

50 Summer Travelling in Iceland.

as we could, but even this necessitated a well-sustained pull
at the bridles of our horses, who had mouths of iron, and
evinced strong objections to being left behind in this desolate
country.

At noon we halted in a little oasis, 800 feet above sea-
level. I spent the time with Peck in taking observations for
latitude and longitude, and fixing our position by bearings.
I found the error of our compass here to be 40^ west, and
the approximate dip of the magnetic needle was 80°. After
the usual rest of one hour we mounted fresh horses, and began
to ascend the Sandafell, soon reaching an elevation from
which we commanded an extensive view of the surrounding
country. Directly below us ran the fj6rs4; away to our
right we could see the immense glaciers of VatnajokuU ; and,
winding its way through lavji beds and sand-plains, rushed the
Ttingnad, the principal affluent of the i*j6rsd. The whole of
the valley of the Ttingnad was intersected with streams as far
as the eye could reach, and had there been any signs of
verdure, the vista would have been one of great beauty ; as it
was, the monotonous shade of the plains and mountains
had not one bit of colour or life to relieve it, and the
whole effect, though grand, was certainly, to my thinking,
gloomy.

With its usual variability, the weather began to change,
the wind freshened, and heavy rain set in, so a halt was made
to enable us to put on our sou'westers and oilskin coats.
This done, we started again, looking a great deal more like
a band of smugglers than a party of English gentlemen on
a pleasure trip. At 3 o'clock we descended the Sandafell
and crossed a nameless stream at the bottom, and after
travelling for about a mile over a moss-covered plain, on
which we saw many sheep, we commenced the ascent of
the LSngalda, which was, if anything, a more dreary waste
than the one we had just left behind us. A peculiar feature

Along tlie Pjdrsd. 51

in these sand-hills is the great number of small lakes ; no
stream runs into them, and they have no outlet, yet their
water is quite sweet, and chemical analysis has shown that
salt is only present in a very minute degree. Having stopped
many times to take angles, we had not advanced so quickly
as we should have done to reach the camping- ground before
dark, and, noting the evident anxiety of the commander-in-
chief to push on at a more rapid pace, we acceded to his
wishes, and began to travel at a steady trot. By 4.30 we had
reached the Sktimstdngnahei^i, and were now passing over
moorland covered with moss and the dwarf willow. I call it
the dwarf willow because everybody else does, but for my
part I can see no resemblance whatever to the willow in the
straggling creeper so designated. Even here there were
many sheep to be seen ; they were as wild as deer, and
scoured off at a rare pace as soon as they winded us. The
rain continued to fall steadily, and the track in consequence
became very slippery in places. We now began to pass a
good deal of snow in the hollows which had remained there
since the previous winter, and, having kept somewhat to the
westward, had lost sight of the I*j6rsd, which was shut out
by intervening hills.

A new set of mountains here came into view, the first we
saw being the snow-capped peak of KerlingafjoU, next those
of Arnarfell-it-mikla ; then, far away to the north-east, we
saw two conical peaks, of precisely similar appearance, called
the North and South H&g&nga, and, before reaching our
camping-ground, the Tdngnafellsjokull was plainly to be
seen, covered with snow.

The weather, in the most obliging manner, suddenly
improved, the rain ceased, and the sun, struggling through
the clouds, lit up the scene. The moorland, covered as it
was with moss and dwarf willow, had an appearance of
fertility which it did not in reality possess ; the little bands

E 2

52 Summer Travelling in Iceland*

of sheep wandering over it, and peaks and glaciers by which
we were surrounded — for Hekla and Btirfell stood boldly out
against the dark clouds behind us, — all combined to make a
truly lovely spectacle.

At 7 o*clock we reached our camping-ground, called by
Asmdndur, Knappoldiver. It is not marked on the Olsens-
Gunnlaugsson map, and may perchance have been manufac-
tured by the commander-in-chief to satisfy my curiosity ;
indeed, he was always ready, after a moment's reflection, to pro-
vide me with a name for every peak or stream that' I saw, nor
did he on all occasions confine himself to giving me only one
for one object ; in several cases it seemed to me, that after
an interval, when some object had by perspective, changed its
appearance, it had also changed its name. I, of course, may
be mistaken, but such is my opinion.

Our tent was soon pitched, the horses unpacked, hobbled,
and turned out to hunt for grass ; the guides said there was
plenty, but I could not see it ; and then Morgan, Peek, and
myself went in quest of fuel wherewith to cook our dinner,
and soon returned to camp with as many of the dried stalks
of the dwarf willow as we could carry, this being the only
material available for that purpose in these wastes : they are
seldom thicker than a pencil, and burn with the greatest
rapidity. Peek undertook the cooking, assisted by Morgan,
and I was stoker, an occupation which required constant
activity, for no sooner were the sticks put on the fire than
they were consumed ; indeed, it was as much as I could do to
keep it supplied with sticks, having frequently to blow it into
life when it threatened to go out, an operation rather trying
to the lungs. As the sparks flew out of the fire and lodged
on my nose and in my beard, I sighed for the sweet sim-
plicity of our cooking operations in the friendly waters of
Blesi. Peek had distinguished himself greatly in the culinary
art on previous occasions, but now^ he surpassed himself, and

Along the PjSrsd. 53

when everything was ready, he put before us such a bowl of
soup as I fancy has seldom fallen to the lot of travellers in
Iceland ; thoroughly warmed and comfortable we turned in,
and slept as soundly as men who have been eleven hours in
the saddle might be expected to do. Though our camp was
1 700 feet above sea^level, the thermometer during the night
only registered 42° Fahr. the minimum temperature. I found
the approximate dip of the magnetic needle to be 8i^

We were up at 6 o*clock next morning, August 14th,
but it was' nearly eight before we started. We found that it
always took the men two hours from the time the horses were
driven in, to pack them ; this was, of course, owing to the large
number. After riding for an hour over sand-hills, we came to
the Dalsa, at this time of the year an inconsiderable stream,
and passing on at a trot over the same description of country,
we reached the banks of the Mikliloekr at 10.30. Shortly after
fording this river, we came upon a rude turf hut, which has been
built ^ a shelter-house for the people who sometimes visit this
place in quest of Iceland moss. As we proceeded we had a
number of nameless streams to ford, some of which, small as
they were, contained very nasty quicksands. Between the
Kis4 and Knffd we had to cross a desolate sand waste^ on which
we halted to change horses. The water in the pools here was
very bad, being full of minute red insects which kept darting
about. After leaving our halting-place, we passed over a
plateau where nothing but ashes and fragments of lava were
to be seen. When in the middle, not an atom of vegetation
of any kind was visible ; there were a few small ponds dotted
about, and after getting more than half-way over, we came to
a small oasis, but we were soon past it, and had again to travel
over ashes and sand.

On reaching the Knffi, we came on signs of the presence
of swans, their feathers being scattered in great numbers along
the banks of the river ; nor was it long before we saw the

54 Summer Travelling in Iceland.

swans themselves ; for on looking down over a large swamp
between us and the i*j6rsd, we could see at least a dozen of
them marching along in single file at a rapid pace towards
the river. The guns were got out ; Morgan, taking Evandr
with him, started in chase, and getting within shot of
them, blazed away with both barrels, the only effect being
to hasten their movement. They finally reached the river,
swam to the opposite bank, and continued their march until
they were lost to sight amongst the rushes. Our guides told
us, that at this season the old birds have lost so many of their
feathers, that they are unable to fly, and the young ones
cannot do so, as they are only half fledged ; at any rate
they will not fly if they can, and, as will be mentioned further
on, we were able to run them down and capture them. Small-
shot has but very little effect on them, and I have seen one
of these birds take five charges of duck-shot before it was
killed.

At 4 o'clock we reached S61eyjarh6f%i, a small oasis on the
banks of the fj6rsa. It was our intention to have crossed the

river here and camp on the other side, but we were unable to
do so in consequence of the sun having melted the snow on
Arnarfellsjokull, causing such a rise in the river that it would
have been madness to attempt to ford it until it had subsided.
At this season, all jokuU rivers are subject to this sudden
rise in their waters, during the afternoon, caused by the sun
melting the glaciers that feed them ; they, however, fall just
as quickly during the night, as but little ice or snow is then
melted ; the forenoon is, therefore, in almost all cases, the
proper time to ford them. As there was nothing left for it
but to wait, we camped, and got our dinner. During the
night the rain came down in torrents, and I began to fear
that our chances of getting across the l*j6rsd on the morrow
were getting very small ; Asmtindur, however, said that the
rain would not affect its depth to any great extent, and true

Fording the Pjdrsd. 55

enough we found next morning that it had fallen considerably
in spite of the torrents of rain which had continued through-
out the night.

August 15/4. — ^We kept in our tent until 10 o'clock, as it
was raining hard, and our day's journey was to be a short one.
The sticks we had collected overnight were all wet, except a
small bundle which we had taken into the tent, and we had
some difficulty in lighting a fire to boil the kettle for breakfast.
The wind blew cold off Arnarfell, which was not far distant,
and standing about in the rain on the soddened ground, made
us impatient to be off; however, the commander-in-chief,
would not move until he considered the river sufficiently low
to ford, and I may here say that it would be most unwise for
any traveller in Iceland to hurry his guide in such a matter ;
they understand the rivers well, and I must do them the
justice to say that they are always willing to cross a river if
there is any fair chance of doing so, and most of them have
their marks by which they can tell its depth in the worst
places. It was near noon before we started for the ford,
Asmtindur leading the way; the pack-horses had been tied
together in threes, as is usual in crossing dangerous rivers,
and the I'jdrsd at this place has a very bad reputation.
A nastier river to look on I never wish to see, with its
glacier waters and black sandbanks. We, however, got
over without any accident, and, as the ford was a straight
one, had little difficulty in following our guide. The water
was deep, and at one place it looked very much as if we
should have to swim for it, but we did not come upon
any quicksands, and they, after all, are the chief dangers to
be dreaded. Though we escaped these abominations in
the river, several of our horses got into one in crossing a
small stream shortly after, and h^d considerable difficulty in
extricating themselves. There was some scattered vegetation
among the sandhills, and round the margins of the small

56 Summer Travelling in Iceland.

lakes, which now became of frequent occurrence, and I was
surprised to see sheep wandering about at this great dis-
tance from any farm, for we were now at least 70 miles from
the nearest homestead, and they could only have arrived at
their present position by swimming either the tj6rsa or the
TfingnaS, both being wide and rapid rivers. The guides did
not seem astonished to find them here, and told me that many
sheep wandered into the <3daSa-hraun (ill-deed lava), and
perished.

As we were leisurely threading our way between the
numerous swamps and ponds by which we were surrounded,
a shout from Evandr caused us to look in the direction of a
large swamp, across which a number of swans were marching
in a very unconcerned sort of a way ; chase was immediately
given, and four half-grown cygnets were captured, and one
swan, weighing 30 lbs., was shot, which took five charges
of duck-shot before it could be killed. Only one bird flew
away, all the others ran, making use of their wings to assist
them, and in this way got over the ground so fast, that it
required a good sharp gallop to catch them. They made for
the largest of the ponds and swam about in the middle,
but only at such a short distance that we might have shot
nearly all of them, which we refrained from doing as we could
not cook them with our small portable stove, and so we let
all but two, which had been injured, go free. The nasty cold
drizzle which had continued throughout the day, towards the
latter part of the afternoon gave place to bright sunshine and
beautifully clear atmosphere, so that the surrounding glaciers
stood prominently out in contrast to the chocolate-coloured
sand over which our route lay. Our journey for this day
was a short one, and at 5 o*clock we arrived at a place where
there was plenty of coarse grass, in a swamp between the hill
on which we decided to pitch our tent, and the river. This
place is called Eyvindarkofaver, and is celebrated as being the

Visit to Eyvindars House. 57

place where a notorious outlaw, Eyvindar, used at times to
live. After the tent had been set up, the horses hobbled and
turned out, and sets of observations taken, Zoega inquired if
we should like to visit Eyvindar's house, and on asking where
it was, he pointed to a mound in the middle of the swamp,
and said, " That Eyvindar house, gentlemen !"

"What!" said I, "that mound?"

" Yes, sir, come, see ! "

So we all started off, jumping from tuft to tuft of grass,
to avoid getting in the soft mud, and in about ten minutes
arrived at what was evidently the remains of an Icelandic
house. It was situated on a small patch of ground slightly
elevated above the surrounding morass ; a stream ran in front
of the place which had once been the doorway, and on ex-
amination we found its bed to be covered with the bones of
animals, among which could be seen those of the horse and
ox, but by far the greater number were sheep-bones. As I
wished to know something of the man who had evidently
lived for some time in this most desolate place, I asked Zoega
if he knew his history, and he (evidently pleased at having
an opportunity of telling us a story) said he did ; and that he
would be glad to tell it to us when we got back to the tent.
We had no sooner returned than by way of opening the
matter, I said —

" Well, Zoega ! and who was this Eyvindar ?" To which he
replied —

" Eyvindar was very good man.'*

" But what did he do, if he was such, a good man, to get
outlawed ? "

" He steal plenty sheep and horse ; he can't help to do
that 1 "

" But," said I, " how was it he could not help stealing ? "

" That all because of an old witch wife ; she make him.
I think I better tell you the whole story, then you will see

58 Summer Travelling in Iceland.

that Eyvindar a good man, though he can't help for steal
sheep ! "

Not a little curious to know how it was possible for any
person to be, at one and the same time, a confirmed thief
and a good man, I took my seat on a pack-saddle and,
lighting my pipe, I settled myself into a comfortable position
opposite Zoega, while he, after clearing his throat and putting
on a somewhat solemn air, commenced the following story,
which I give just as related by him, with only si^ch changes
of expression as are necessary.

Story of Eyvindar the Outlaw.

" When E)rvindar was born,** said Zoega, " I do not
exactly know ; but it must have been more than a hundred
years ago, for he died when people who are old now were
little children. His mother was a widow, and lived in the
north country ; he was her only son, and she took great
pains to teach him hymns and used to make him read his
Bible. He was a very strong boy, and could run and wrestle
better than most boys of his age ; but he had one fault, he
was too fond of laughing at people, and one day he laughed
so much at an old woman, who was a witch, that she cursed
him and said he should be a thief to the end of his days,
but that he should be able to run so fast that no one should
be able to catch him. Eyvindar laughed at the old woman
more than ever when she told him this, because he never had
stolen anything, and what is more, had never felt inclined to
do so ; but before long people began to miss things, and it
soon became known that Eyvindar was a thief. As he grew
up he became worse, until at last he took to the mountains
as a regular sheep-stealer, and was proclaimed an outlaw. For
some years he led a solitary life in the mountains and lava-
beds, until his depredations became so unbearable that the
farmers banded together to hunt him down and bring him to

Story of Eyvindar. 59

justice ; but this was no easy matter, for he had so many
hiding-places in the lava-beds that it seemed almost impos-
sible to capture him. At length, however, he was seen in the
middle of an extensive plain, and as he was on foot, while his
pursuers were mounted on their best horses, they made sure of
an easy capture. The instant Eyvindar saw them he began
to run in the direction of the mountains, and he went at such
speed that it was only the best horses that were able to gain
on him ; finding that he could not escape by running in the
usual way, he commenced turning a series of what are com-
monly known as " cart wheels ** at such a furious rate, that all
the farmers were soon distanced." — " For," explained Zoega,
" witch always make a man run very fast that way, so fast no
horse can catch him."

" Thanks for that explanation," said I ; " now go on with
the story."

" Well," continued Zoega, " Eyvindar grew to be a very
fine man, and all the girls liked him, and he took one of them
for a wife, and then he found this place and built the house
which can be seen from here. He saw there was grass,
and that it was so far from all other houses that he thought
it would be quite safe for him to live here. No one ever used
to travel this way, and it was such a long time since people
had seen Eyvindar that they began to say that he and his wife
had died in the mountains, and they might have continued to
think so if it had not been for the number of sheep that they
missed at counting time ; then they felt sure that he was not
only alive but stealing more than ever ; so the farmers again
set out in quest of him, and soon discovered his house. They
waited until night, and then crept up close to it and listened,
when they heard Eyvindar reading the Bible to his wife, and
after that they began to sing hymns." — " So you see," said
Zoega, " he was good man."

" Very good," said I ; " but go on with the story."

6o Summer Travelling in Iceland.

" After a little, they ran into the house and captured the
wife, but Eyvindar escaped by turning somersaults among
them at such a rate that they could not lay hold of him ; the
wife was taken to Akreyri, but she escaped and joined her
husband again, and though she was often afterwards cap-
tured, she always effected her escape. Just twenty years after
he had been proclaimed an outlaw, the people of Akreyri were
astonished one morning by an old man and woman coming
into the town, who declared themselves to be Eyvindar and
his wife ; and as they had now grown old, they had come to
the determination to lead good lives, and steal sheep no more.
They were kindly received, for there was a law which pro-
tected any one who had been twenty years outlawed, from
punishment, provided he delivered himself up at the expira-
tion of that term, and declared his intention to lead an honest
life. For some years the old couple lived quietly enough,
until one day, when the sun was shining brightly, Eyvindar
turned to his wife, and said :

" * It must be beautiful weather up in the mountains.*

" * Let us go and see,' said the wife.

" So they rose and went away up the mountain side
together ; that was the last time that Eyvindar and his wife
were seen alive. After some days, as they did not return,
the people went in search of them, and found them lying
dead on the mountain, each in death retaining their hold on
a sheep they had stolen, and which also lay dead between
them."

** So, Zoega,** said I, " that is the story of Eyvindar."
"Yes, sir, that the story, except he very good to poor

people; he always give them sheep, and never rob poor

man."

Eyvindar seems to be the Icelandic Robin Hood, and

possibly, like that worthy, avoided stealing from the poor

Preparing to Cross the Sprmgisandr. 6i

because there was but little to be got from them ; while his
wonderful escapes may doubtless be attributed to the timely
information he received from his poor friends rather than to
the " cart-wheel '* process of locomotion so generally believed
in by many of the Icelanders. That there is some truth in
this story is evident from the ruins of the house and the
large quantity of bones scattered round it. A more secluded
spot, or one more suited to his purpose, Eyvindar could
hardly have found, surrounded as it is by at least sixty miles
of desert on every side, some portions of which are, for a
great part of the year, both difficult and dangerous to tra-
verse, even to those who are best acquainted with them.

After hearing the story, I made a sketch of the Arnarfells-
jokuU, which I have given in the annexed woodcut. To the
north-east of our position there was another very considerable
glacier mountain, the TtingnafellsjokuU, which showed up in
strong contrast with the dark brown sand of which the inter-
vening hills were composed. Down in the valley, between
our tent and Arnarfell ran the river i'jorsd, while numerous
pools, on which we could see wild duck swimming about,
were dotted here and there in the swamp below. Just before
turning in, Ziggi reported that he could see a tent on the other
side of the river, but the distance was so great that even with
the aid of a good binocular we were unable to make out
whether it was a party of moss-gatherers or travellers. Before
retiring to rest we were told by the "commander-in-chief"
that we must be up and ready to start at 3 o^clock next
morning, as we should have to cross the Sprengisandr, a
distance of sixty-five miles, before the next evening; so,
rolling our blankets round us, we were soon fast asleep.

August 16th, — At 2 o'clock we were aroused by the
guides setting out to bring the horses in; so we got up,
cooked breakfast, struck the tent, and then had to wait until
five before everything was ready for a start. The air was

62 Summer Travelling in Iceland.

sharp and cold, the thermometer indicating two degrees of
frost, but we had a splendid sunrise, and everything bid fair
for a fine day — a matter of no little importance to us, as the
fogs which often prevail on the Sprengisandr, by hiding the
landmarks, make the journey somewhat hazardous on account
of the numerous bogs with which the desert abounds. Our
horses were in wonderfully good condition considering the
nature of the country we had travelled, and the scant fare they
had been able to pick up. After crossing one or two in-
considerable streams, we fairly commenced our long day's
journey over one of the most barren and forbidding places
in the whole world. The sameness of the prospect admits
of but one description : it was a stony desert, with rolling
hills as far as the eye could reach ; nothing to relieve the
monotony save here and there some bright little clusters
of saxifrage, which seems to flourish in portions of this in-
hospitable waste.

I observed, what was to me, a very curious phenomenon
during this day's journey. On arriving at the summit of
some of the numerous sandhills over which we had to pass,
as I was watching the pack-horses, I saw the earth beneath
them begin to shake in much the same manner as I should
have expected had they been passing over some elastic sub-
stance, the ground yielding under the weight of the horses,
and springing back into its former position as soon as
relieved. Asmdndur was very careful in choosing his way
across these places, nor was this care unnecessary, as was
shortly afterwards proved by one of the horses, which had
strayed a little to the right, breaking through the surfiice
and immediately sinking up to the girths in mud the
colour of red lead ; had it not been a strong beast, it would
in all probability have remained there, but, feeling itself
sinking, it made two or three desperate plunges, and suc-
ceeded in regaining firmer ground. These quaking bogs

Crossing tJie Sprengisandr. 63

only occurred on the tops of the hills ; in the valleys the
ground was quite firm. There was nothing in the appearance
of the soil to indicate the presence of these places, as the
surfece was generally covered with a layer of sand so dry that
the least wind drove it about in clouds. Being anxious to
make a quick journey, Asmfindur, who had three horses to
ride, which he kept changing as soon as they showed signs
of fatigue, did not spare the pace; so we rattled along in
a manner that would have astonished a Mexican "carga-
dore.** The ground in places was covered so thickly with
sharp blocks of lava that it was a marvel to me how our
horses were able to pick their way among them at the quick
trot at which we were going ; as it was they cut their legs and
feet, but necessity has no laws, and we were obliged to push
on fast. At midday we halted close to a lake, which extended
for about seven miles in a northerly direction ; and from this
point, which has an elevation of 2590 feet above sea-level, we
commanded a splendid view of the surrounding country, the
most prominent object being the immense glacier, VatnajokuU,
which in the distance looked like a huge stationary cloud,
and made Ttingnafells, though much closer, appear by com-
parison an insignificant object. We had now reached the
highest point of the Sprengisandr, and, starting afresh, began
to descend gradually towards the north. The character of
the country was much the same as that we had already
passed over — sand and lava dust varied at times by thickly-
strewn blocks of lava. Soon after leaving our halting-place,
a considerable breeze sprang up, and the dust raised by the
pack-train was most disagreeable. In spite of this, however,
our guides began to sing a song which has special reference
to this journey. I had often heard them singing it since
we left Hagaey, and had managed to catch the air and some
of the words ; they sang it slowly, and the commander-in-
chief, forgetting for the time his exalted position, joined

Summer Travelling in Iceland.

in with an energy, so catching, that in a short time we were
all at it.

The following is the song, the music having been written
by my sister, whose only guide was my somewhat unmusical

voice :

Mr. Magnfisson, the Assistant Librarian, Cambridge
University, has kindly translated the words, which I give
both in Icelandic and English.

RfSum, riSum, rekum yfir sandinn,
Rokkr fer aS siga yfir HerSubreiS
Alfadrottning fer aS beizla gandinn
Ekki er gott aS vera d hennar leiS.

Vaensta klirinn vildi eg gefa til
AS vera kominn o'nf KiSagiL

Ride we, ride we, drive we o'er the sand,
Twilight's sinking over HeiSubreiiS,
Elfin-queen is bridling her wolf-steed,
Better not to be within her way.

I would give the best steed that I were
Already as far as down in KiSagiL

The effect of this song when sung by several voices is by
no means unpleasing. Our people certainly performed in
a manner that was highly creditable to the power of their
lungs ; Evandr's whole heart seemed to be in it, and the
others sang in the conscientious manner of men who were
doing the orthodox thing. At 3.30 we came upon the first
signs of verdure in the form of some scanty patches of coarse
grass on the banks of a small stream flowing to the north,

The Sprmgisandr. 65

.and shortly after we caught sight of some sheep which had
evidently followed up the stream. By 4 o'clock we were in
sight of Ki^agil, which is the usual halting-place when
crossing the Sprengisandr ; but finding no feed for the horses,
we left it to the right, and urged on our poor tired beasts in
quest of better pasturage. Asmtindur professed to know of
such a place, but, after riding for three hours more, we were
fain to come to a halt for the night in a swamp, where
there seemed to be, if possible, less feed for the horses than in
the neighbourhood of Ki«agiL The day had been beautifully
fine, and, with the exception of the dust, we had nothing to
complain of in our journey over this ill-reputed desert. It
is not, however, difficult to imagine that in bad weather,
when fogs prevail, a journey across the Sprengisandr would
be attended with considerable risk, both on account of
the quicksands and the probability of wandering into the
Od&ISa-hraun, an extensive lava desert to the eastward, from
which the unfortunate traveller would stand but a poor
chance of extricating himself. For these reasons it seems
unlikely that this route will ever be generally used.

Our journey across the Sprengisandr occupied ten hours,
which Asmtindur said was the shortest time it had ever been
done in. He called our camping-place Prestmost, but I have
serious doubts as to whether it really had any name at all,
for it was entirely devoid of any features that would distin-
guish it from its surroundings. We were still nearly 2000 feet
above sea-level, and the night air was raw and cold, so that,
after getting something to eat, we were not a little glad to
turn in under the shelter of our comfortable tent, and were
soon sleeping soundly, as might be expected, after our ride
of sixty-five miles over a rough country. At 7.30 the next
morning we started again, and travelled along the banks of
a stream over swampy ground interspersed with sandy patches.
The poor horses were very tired after yesterday's long journey,

66 Summer Travelling in Iceland.

but we got along fairly well. As we advanced, the hills on
either side of us began to show more signs of vegetable life,
until at length on one of them we caught sight of a tent and
a party of haymakers at work. We very nearly lost one of
our horses here in the following manner. I was watching
the pack-train as they trotted along, when suddenly one of
the horses disappeared ; it had fallen into a fissure about ten
feet deep, which lay right in the middle of the track. I
expected to find it so seriously injured that it would have to
be killed, but, after neighing with fright, it scrambled out at a
place where the sides were not quite perpendicular, and trotted
off after its companions apparently none the worse for its fall.
Some of the haymaking party came down from the mountain
to meet us, and accompanied us to the farm of Mjofidalr,
where they set before us some capital skyr, black bread, and
coffee.

Asmtindur, having brought us as far as he had engaged
to, presented his little bill for payment, but his charge seemed
to me to be so exorbitant that I refused to pay it until he
had reduced it by twenty-five kroner. After considerable
argument he consented to accept this reduction, and was even
then getting much more than was justly his due. He clearly
attempted to impose upon us, and I should strongly advise
any future traveller who may require his services to have a
clear understanding with him, in writing, before starting.
Zoega behaved very well, and would not let himself be talked
over ; indeed on this and all other occasions he proved him-
self to be a most trustworthy man where our interests were
concerned.

After a short halt we crossed the Grjoti, which runs in
the valley close to the farm, and, passing over a steep hill,
came to the farm of Ish611 in the plain below. This place is
beautifully situated at the end of a lake, about two miles long,
and one broad, along the western shore of wliich our route

Arrival at Lundarbrekka. 67

lay. The track was a good one, and after fording the Grjota
again, we arrived at Mjrri, a farm surrounded with capital
grass-land; indeed the whole country about here was supe-
rior in this respect to anything I had seen since leaving
Hruni. At this place we procured a guide for the ford of
the Skjdlfandaflj6t, the bed of which is full of big stones,
and the river itself is very rapid. Our horses stumbled very
badly ; Peek's was within an ace of rolling over with him in
the deepest part of the ford ; my horse put his fore-foot into
a hole, and so nearly came down, that my riding-boots were
filled with water. We then .crossed a smaller river — the
Svartd — and arrived at the church-farm of Lundarbrekka at
at 5.30, but were unable to get quarters in the house, as a
new church was being built, and the guest-room was occupied
by the workmen ; so we pitched our tent on the side of the
hill overlooking the valley. We got the usual meal of skyr,
cofiee, and black bread, which we heartily enjoyed, and tried
to persuade the farmer to kill a sheep, as our stores were
exhausted, but nothing would induce him to do so ; indeed,
for some reason or other, he did not seem to be pleased with
our visit, which was unfortunate, as it was absolutely necessary
that we should remain here for a day, at least, to rest our
horses, and to let them have a good feed ; however, with our
good tent we were quite independent, and with regard to
food, we were not likely to come to much harm as long as
we could get skyr, coffee, and black bread ; so we retired to
rest in that contented state of mind which is in itself a
continual feast.

F 2

68 Summer Travelling in Iceland.

CHAPTER VI.

Morgan starts to visit Askfa — Lundarbrekka — An. Uncomfortable Ride— rLost
in a Snow Storm — Gautlond — Kind Reception — Wild Duck Shooting —
An Adventure with the Cows — Fishing in the Laxd — The Midges —
Morgan Returns — Instability of the Grounds

August iStk. — During the night and early morning a good
deal of snow fell, but did not lie on the ground ; the hills,
however, seemed to have put on their winter garb, and were
covered with it.

Morgan, who wished to visit Askja, had arranged to leave
us this morning with J6n of Vidrkaer as his guide. This man
was the first to organise a party to visit Askja in 1875, when
its terrible eruption alarmed the whole island ; and it was, in
a great measure, in consequence of his representations, that
the Danish Government sent a scientific expedition to inspect
the volcano, and report on the eruption. At 1 1 o'clock they
left us, taking all the provisions we could give them, as they
were going into a part of the country where there were no
farms, and would have to depend entirely on the food they
carried. Before leaving, it was arranged that we should meet
again at Reykjahli?, as Peek and myself intended to try and
get some fishing on the Laxd.

Our horses were so much in need of rest that we deter-
mined to stay here all day, though the farmer did not seem
overpleased at the prospect of having our company. He was as
unlike the generality of Iceland farmers as possible, and would
only let us have such things as were absolutely necessary,
for which, in the end, he tried to charge nearly double the
amount we had to pay at other places ; in short, he was a

Lundarbrekka. 69

regular screw, which was the more astonishing as he was
evidently very comfortably off. He walked about all day
with his hands in his pockets, while the people of the farm
were hard at work haymaking, and when we told him that
we were out of stores, and would be glad to buy a sheep
of him, he simply shrugged his shoulders, as much as to
say, "What are your little troubles to me?** and declined
to sell us one ; he, however, came to the tent to see if he
could turn an honest penny, by selling us some metal that
he said was silver, and had once formed part of the church-
plate, which had been melted when that building was burned
down. A new church is being built of stone, and, judging
from the leisurely manner in which the masons were proceed-
ing with their work, will be a considerable time before it is
completed. These men get six kroner, about six and six-
pence, a day, and certainly do as little work for it as possible.
While we were here they would work for one hour, then rest
for about the same time, and leave off work altogether at
5 o'clock.

We went all over the fermhouse during the afternoon,
and found it to be a very complete establishment. Under
one roof there was a grist mill, the cow-stable, blacksmith's
shop and dwelling-rooms ; the water that turned the mill
passed through the room tliat answered for a kitchen, fowl-
house, and general sitting-room, and we were assured that
when all the doors and windows were closed, this house would
be quite warm, even in the most severe winter, as at that
season all the cows would be in the stable, and the heat from
their bodies would greatly increase the temperature. I have
no doubt that this would be the case, for it requires no
great stretch of the imagination to fancy what the state of
the atmosphere would be, nor can it be doubted that such a
mode of living must tend greatly to shorten the lives of those
who subject themselves to it. There are no fireplaces in Ice-

*]0 Summer Travelling in Iceland,

landic farmhouses, therefore no chimneys and no ventilation.
The food is cooked on a turf fire made upon the floor of the
room that answers for a kitchen, and the smoke escapes
through a small hole in the roof. Even this vent was here
nearly blocked up with mutton-hams, which were in course of
being cured. Why there should be no fireplaces in the farm-
houses, in a country where the thermometer in winter often
falls as low as 25° F. below zero, is indeed most astonishing.
It cannot be on account of the dearth of fuel, as peat is
plentifiil; but for some cause or another, no provision of
any kind is made for producing artificial heat, and during
the whole of our journey we only saw one stove at a form.

After looking over the house, we took our fishing-rods
and tried for some trout in the river, but we had no sport ;
indeed, our host told us before starting that there was nothing
to be caught. The weather had grown much colder, and
flakes of snow would every now and then begin to fall. Peek
managed, with some Liebig's extract, mulligatawny paste,
and black bread, to make some capital soup. I did my best
to assist him, but remembering the old adage, " too many
cooks spoil the broth/' I was content to act as assistant, and
the credit of producing a really good mess was entirely due
to the culinary skill of my companion. During the whole
operation we were surrounded by an admiring crowd, who,
not content with seeing the manner in which we had prepared
our meal, followed us into the guest chamber to take note of
how much of it we could eat. I only trust that my endea-
vour to satisfy, proved as satisfactory to them as it did to
myself, for I do not remember ever having made a heartier
meal. By this time the snow was falling steadily, and so,
voting our tent the most comfortable place, we turned in
and were soon fast asleep.

When we unlaced the tent door next morning, we saw the
whole country covered with snow, except where the wind.

mmmm

An Uncomfortable Ride. 71

which was blowing freshly, had bared the sides of the hills.
The horses had been brought up, and so we lost no time in
striking our tent and preparing for the day's journey. Before
starting we got some coffee, black bread, and skyr at the
house, and then followed a very warm argument between
Zoega and the farmer, as to the amount of his bill ; however,
finding that our guide would not assist him to impose upon
us, he consented to a reduction of 25 per cent, and was even
then considerably overpaid. Though the argument had been
warm, the weather decidedly had not, and standing about in
the wind and snow had thoroughly chilled us, so that when we
mounted our horses, our fingers and toes were aching with
cold ; to make matters worse, the wind was blowing harder
than ever from the north-east, and driving the snow right in
our faces. We at once began to mount a hill, and by the
time we arrived at the top^ L had lost all feeling in my toes,
and the snow, having found its way inside my oilskin suit, was
melting with the heat of my body. It was here that I, for the
first time, began to understand why it was that an Icelander
on horseback never for one instant keeps his legs still, but
incessantly swings them about. This habit is most unsightly,
but it nevertheless has its use in keeping up the circulation.

Zoega strongly advised me to follow his example, assuring
me that by doing so I should soon get my feet warm ; and as
there was just at that moment nothing that I desired more, I
began to kick like one possessed, but I suppose that I must
have begun too late, for it certainly did not have the promised
effect. On future occasions, when I felt my feet getting cold,
I always went through this jumping-jack process, and gene-
rally succeeded in keeping myself comfortably warm. The
snow was so blinding that we could only see for a short dis-
tance ahead, and the pack-horses evinced a desire to leave
the trail, which could only be overcome by a free application
of the whip to the offenders. Our guides were evidently at a

72 Summer Travelling in Iceland.

loss, as both Peek and myself observed that we were wan-
dering about in a most erratic manner. On asking Zoega if
he knew where we were, he confessed that he did not, as he
had never been that way before.

" Had Evandr been here before ? '*

" Yes, he had, fourteen years ago ! '*

" Did he remember the way ? **

" No, he did not, but he would be sure to find it.**

" Were we not now getting into a swamp ? "

" Yes, he (Zoega) believed we were."

From this conversation I saw that we were wandering about
in the snow-storm without any one of our party having the
least idea where we were going. Evandr, on the strength of
having been here when he was a boy, took charge as guide ;
he rode on ahead, and at any rate took us clear of the swamp,
bringing us to a place where the ptarmigan were 30 numerous
that we could hear them all round as they flew away. Peek got
out his gun and knocked one bird over, but on his assuring me
that his hands were so numb that he could not feel the trigger,
I persuaded him to put the gun away, thinking it highly pro-
bable that he might put a charge of shot into one of us, with
which opinion he quite agreed, and so he mounted and
started again. After going through swamps, and over hills,
we at last stumbled on to a large farm, which we found on
inquiry to be Gautlond, and being wet to the skin, and very
cold, we made up our minds to proceed no farther. This
farm belongs to a member of the Allying, who was absent on
his parliamentary duties : his family, however, received us in
the kindest manner, and made all haste to prepare some hot
coffee, begging us to come in out of the cold, and assuring
us that they would soon have dinner ready. We had indeed
got into comfortable quarters, and after drinking our coflfee
and changing our clothes, felt quite ready to do justice to the
good things in the shape of soup and trout, which the young

^^T-

Gautlond. 73

ladies of the house had placed before us. They asked us to
excuse such simple fare, as they had been quite unprepared to
receive visitors, but that they hoped to give us something
better to-morrow. The kindness and hospitality of these
people, contrasted very strongly with the greed of the Lun-
darbrekka man, whose endeavour evidently was, to get as
much out of us, and to give as little, as he possibly could.

The driving snow had thoroughly wetted everything
through, so that sleeping in our tent would have been
attended with great discomfort ; for this, however, there was,
in the present instance, no necessity, as we were shown into a
clean double-bedded room, and told that it was quite at our
service for as long as we chose to stay. The eider-down
quilts looked so warm and inviting, that I at once made up
my mind to turn in early, and by nine o'clock we were both
asleep in our comfortable beds, having decided to stay here
for a few days* trout-fishing.

The morning was beautifully fine ; we were aroused by
one of the daughters of the house bringing us coffee and
cakes, and telling us that breakfast would be on the table
in an hour, so up we jumped, enjoyed the luxury of a thorough
good wash, and then went out to have a look round before
breakfast. All the snow had disappeared from the plains,
and a number of women were busily employed spreading out
the hay to dry. The farm, with its numerous sheep-sheds,
was by far the largest we had yet seen, and there was an air
of thrift about the whole place ; not one idle person was to
be seen ; even the children were at work haymaking, and the
tinkling of hammers could be heard in the smithy, where the
farmer's sons were busy about some repairs. To the south
and south-east the mountains of Sellandafjall, Bl&fjall,
Hvannfell, and Btirfell, all white with the newly-fallen snow,
shut in the plain in that direction ; to the north rose a moun-
tain, Vindbelgjarfjall, which had the appearance of an immense

74 Summer Travelling in Iceland.

pyramid, and, unlike the others, stood out dark and clear,
without a sign of snow upon its sides or summit. At a short
distance from the house ran the Krdkd, and a small stream
running past the farm found its way by a tortuous course,
through the meadows into a small lake about two miles
distant, towards which we could see vast numbers of wild
fowl taking their flight.

By the time we had taken a good look round, Zoega came
to call us for breakfast, and after having done justice to the
good meal that was provided for us, we took our rods and
went down to the stream to get some fishing. One of the
haymakers came to show us a place where there were plenty
of char, and there they were sure enough, by the dozen^ lying
at the bottom of a pool about twelve feet deep. The water
was as clear as crystal, as smooth as glass, a bright sun was
shining, and in addition to these drawbacks, the nets had been
hauled in the river that morning in order to get some char
for our breakfast ; it is therefore not to be wondered at that,
after two hours* steady fishing, we did not get a single rise ;
so returning to the house. Peek took his gun and I went with
him towards the lake to get a shot at the wild duck ; there
was an old boat hauled up on the shore, and I was to act as
waterman. On our way we had to pass close to some cattle ;
these beasts appeared to take an intense interest in our move-
ments ; however, as they were quiet-looking old cows, we paid
no attention to them, until, hearing something coming behind
me, I turned round and found that they were following us.
I tried to drive them away, but they stood still and began
tossing their heads about in a manner that gave me clearly
to understand I had better not come too close. Thinking it
probable that they would leave us alone if we took no fiirther
notice of them, we continued on oui way towards the
place where we could see the boat ; but no sooner did we
move than the cattle began to close down upon us, led by an

An Adventure with the Cows. 75

old cow, with the light of battle in her eye. We were now
on the shores of the lake, which was very shallow with a
muddy bottom, and it certainly did look very much as if we
should have to take to the water, as these beasts were now
only a few yards off, and seemed determined to become better
acquainted with us ; when just at this moment some ducks
coming within shot, Peek threw his gun up to take a shot at
them. This action on his part so offended the old cow that
she immediately commenced hostilities, putting down her
head, and, followed by her companions, came straight at us.
I shouted to Peek to look out, but the old lady and her fol-
lowing would inevitably have put us into the lake, had not
Peek at this instant fired. This startled them for a moment,
and gave us time to reach the boat, which we were not long
in launching, and not a minute too soon, for having recovered
from their fright, they charged down on us just as we
shoved off fi-om the shore, and I must confess that I was by
no means sorry to be out of their reach.

These same cattle were perfectly quiet to all the people
about the farm, but always showed a great aversion to us. I
believe that this dislike for foreigners is very common in
the domestic cattle of all countries ; for instance, in China,
they will almost invariably attack Europeans, and I remember
a painter, who had just arrived from England, and was work-
ing for me on my place in Vancouver's Island, very nearly
losing his life in the same manner. He had been warned not
to go among the cows on the prairie, as they would know
that he was a stranger, and might hurt him ; but thinking
that the people were making fun of him, he neglected the
advice given, and had no sooner got among them than they
mobbed him, and had it not been that I happened to pass by
on horseback, they would inevitably have torn him to pieces.
As it was, he nearly died of fright, and left the place the same
day. Those of my readers who have been shooting on the

76 Summer Travelling in Iceland,

plains at the back of Monte Video, will, doubtless, remember
the caution that is, or at least was, necessary when approach-
ing a herd of cattle, which would take no notice whatever
of one of the natives. For my part, experience has taught
me that even old cows, in unfrequented districts of foreign
countries, are not to be despised unless one is prepared to
shoot them before they come into too close quarters
with you.

But to return to our duck-shooting. After a few birds had
been killed, the others became so wary that they would never
come within shot. There were, however, some divers, which
rather seemed to like the fun ; they were so quick in diving,
that it was sheer waste of ammunition to shoot at them.
The shot would strike the water all round the place where
they had been, but in only one instance did we succeed in
killing. After spending a very pleasant day we returned to
the farm, and found the people still hard at work. Some
twenty horses had just returned from the mountains laden with
grass ; some of the haymakers were employed spreading it out
to dry ; others were tying the hay, which was already cured,
into large bundles, and carrying it away on their backs to
the stacks near the sheep-houses ; and the women who looked
after the dairy were busy in the folds milking the ewes. The
greatest good nature prevailed ; jokes and laughter could be
heard on every side. I have heard these people spoken of as
a stolid race ; such, however, is not my experience of them,
and I very much doubt if the same amount of merriment
and good humour, after a hard day*s work, could be found
among the agricultural population of any other country. A
comfortable, well-served dinner was ready for us in the guest
chamber, to which we did ample justice, after which, telling
Zoega to have our horses ready in the morning to take us to
the Laxd, we took a stroll over the hills and then turned in.

After breakfast we started for the Salmon River, so called

Fishing in the Laxd. "jy

on account of the numbers of those fish which frequent its
lower waters ; but they are unable to ascend the river as far
as the place we were going to visit, which is situated about
twenty miles above the falls. Half an hour's ride brought
us to HelluvaS, where we went through the usual form of
asking leave of the proprietor to fish in the river. I say
form, for I believe this request is never refused in the case
of trout-fishing. With salmon it is a different matter, and
in most places payment for each day's fishing is required.
Having obtained permission, we started for the river, which
is of considerable size, and runs very fast over a rocky bottom
in which there are many deep pools. We had not com-
menced operations five minutes before Peek had hooked a
three-pound trout. It was a very strong fish, and took some
time to land ; the bait he used was a small artificial trout, and
in a short time he had caught eight fish weighing seventeen
pounds. I tried a fly for some time but had no sport at all, the
reason, doubtless, being that I had not the right sort ; all my
flies were small, and these trout want a small gaudy salmon-
fly. The midges near the river began to attack us as soon
as we arrived, but having provided ourselves with Porter's
" anti-mosquito veils," we were able to defy them, and found
this invention to be a great success. I should strongly advise
any one visiting Iceland to get one ; they can be piuchased
at i8i Strand, and carried in the pocket, ready to put on at
a moment's notice.

The old moss-grown lava-bed which forms the bank of
the Laxd is full of caves and holes ; into one of the latter I
fell ; it was so hidden by the moss that I walked right into it,
and might have had a very nasty fall, but as it was, I only gave
myself a good shaking. We fished on this river for two
days, and had very good sport ; there are any number of
large trout, and a good fisherman would be sure to kill more
fish than he could conveniently carry away. It is only half-

78 Summer Travelling in Iceland.

an-hour*s ride from Gautlond, where he would find good
living and a clean bed, while his expenses would probably not
exceed five shillings a day, unless he had a large pack-train
with him, when, of course, they would be considerably more.
Close to the best place for fishing, is the farm of Helluva* ; it
is a poor little place, but the farmer is a very civil man and pro-
vided a good meal of skyr, coffee, and black bread, for which,
and looking after our horses, he charged three kroner. On
the hills round Gautlond there is plenty of shooting to be
got. I need hardly say that a good strong setter would be
very useful and save a lot of work, as the birds at times lie
very close, and hide behind the dwarf willow and lava blocks.

I spent the forenoon of next day in taking observations
with the transit theodolite, and making a sketch of this place,
Gautlond, which is given in the illustration. I had just
finished when Morgan and his guide appeared on the opposite
hill, so off I ran to meet them. They had evidently had a
rough time of it, and Morgan's boots bore silent evidence as
to the nature of the ground over which he had walked ; they
were scratched and cut all over, but I am glad to say that
their owner appeared to be little the worse for his hardships,
except that, in chipping off a specimen of the lava, a small
particle had flown into his eye, and must, I fear, have caused him
considerable pain, in spite of his declaration to the contrary.
I did my best to remove it, but was unable to do so, and it
eventually worked out of itself. He gave us a most inter-
esting description of Askja, and as he has been so kind as to
furnish me with a detailed account of his journey, I will give
it to my readers in the next chapter.

The results of our observations for the error of the
compass, and dip of the magnetic needle at this place, were as
follows : — Error of compass, 36^30' W., approximate dip of
the needle, 80^, the minimum temperature was 30^ F., tlie
maximum 44® F. At Gautlond I noticed the following cir-

Instability of the Ground. 79

cumstance, which will give some idea of the instability of
the ground. In front of the farmhouse the earth had been
trodden quite hard by people continually passing over it, and
from its solid appearance I judged it to be a good place to set
up our theodolite : having done so, and carefully levelled the
instrument, I left it for a few minutes, when, on my return,
I was astonished to find that it required re-levelling, and was
about to commence that operation, when I observed that the
bubbles in the levels retreated from me whenever I came near
the instrument ; and this was the case on whichever side I
might be standing, thus showing that the surface of tlie
ground, though so hard and dry, must have yielded consider-
ably under the pressure of my weight. I tried several other
places, but with the same result, and was some time before
I found a sufficiently stable place on which to set up the
theodolite.

8o Summer Travelling in Iceland.

CHAPTER VII.

A VISIT TO ASKJA, BY £. DELMAR MORGAN, F.R.G.S.

'^ et incedis per ignes

Suppositos cineri doloso."

Preparations for Askja^-Jbn of Vidrkar; his Farm; his JVifg — Icelandic
Poetry — An Idle Day — A Visitor — D^ngjufjoll — Previous Explorations
of AskjaSvartdkot—The Odc^a-hraun—Lava Fields—'' The Basket''
— A Cold Night— Iceland Ponies — Her^ubrei^ — Pumice Cone — The
new CrcUers — Our Return.

It was not without regret that I took leave of my com-
panions at Lundarbrekka, for though we had arranged to meet
again on Myvatn Lake, yet there was an uncertainty about
the future which interfered with the unmixed enjoyment of
being about to visit the most recent active volcano of Iceland,
besides which the want of an interpreter and difficulty of
communicating with the natives might be insuperable ob-
stacles to the success of my enterprise. Morning broke
damp, cold, and dispiriting. There had been a hard frost
during the night and a fall of snow had whitened the hills
bordering the valley of the Skjdlfiindaflj6t, reminding us that
the time for camping out was drawing to a close, and that if we
lingered in these high latitudes, we might run the risk of being
left to winter in the island, a calamity we had before con-
templated only from a ludicrous point of view. It would
indeed have been anything but an agreeable finale to our
adventures, had we, by sqme unlucky chance, missed the last
steamer, and been detained in Iceland till spring. Not that
we feared a want of hospitality on the part of the natives, for
they had invariably shown us kindness, but we rather distrusted

Preparations for Askja. 8i

our powers of returning their civility. Perhaps an accident
of this kind might have developed dormant talents, or, at all
events, given an opportunity for prosecuting studies in Ice-
landic in some such way as when Dascnt opened a new vein
of legendary lore with his Norse tales, or a more recent tra-
veller, Mr. C. G. W. lK)ck, collected materials for his book,*
which should be consulted by every traveller in Iceland.
Everything considered, however, we had too many home ties

to risk being separated from them during the long winter of
these regions, and we therefore decided to adhere as closely as
possible to the programme we had laid down.

My excursion to Askja had only been broached the day
after an unusually rapid ride across the formidable Sprengi-
sandr desert, when, finding that we might halt for two or
three days and rest our ponies before pushing on to Akreyri,
my companions decided to try fishing in the neighbourhood of

'The Home of the Eddas,' by C. G, W. Lock.

82 Summer Travelling in Iceland.

Myvatn. Not being an ardent Waltonian, and having read
much about Askja, I preferred attempting its ascent. Zoega
was summoned to our councils, and pronounced it feasible.
He learnt from the farmers on the Skjdlfandaflj6t that on
the opposite side of their river lived the man who had been
the first to make the ascent, and the local guide, who showed
us the ford, undertook to communicate with him. This is
how I happened to become acquainted with J6n of Vidrkaer,
and as he contributed greatly to the success of my excursion,
it may interest the reader to learn something of him.

His first appearance, it must be confessed, was somewhat
unprepossessing, but perhaps this may have been that our
eyes had not become accustomed to Icelandic dress. He
wore a dark suit of homespun cloth of homely cut, trousers
much patched about the knees regardless of colour and
material, a black felt wideawake, and a knitted comforter
round the. neck. In figure he was short and square built,
with good features, sandy hair, blue eyes, and colourless
complexion. From a small metal snufF-box with a bit of
looking-glass inside the lid, he kept taking a quid of tobacco
and chewing it with evident gusto. Though in outward
looks he may have passed for a gentleman in reduced cir-
cumstances rather out at elbows, he was prompt in action,
civil, and obliging. A bargain was soon struck for the hire
of his services as guide and for all necessary arrangements,
including ponies and provender. Two pack-boxes contained
my clothes and a few provisions ; besides these a light bell-
tent, a sleeping-bag, and wraps made up the total of my
baggage. Everything being ready, we started from Lundar-
brekka and proceeded to retrace part of our journey of the
previous day along the right bank of the Skjalfandaflj6t.
After jogging along at a slow trot for about two hours, we
stopped at a farm and dismounted. J6n entered, and shortly

Vidrkcer Farm. 83

afterwards invited me to do the same. The owner, who wore
a smock formerly in such common use among agricultural
classes in England, was Jon's brother-in-law. His wife, J6n's
sister, a bright little person, served us with coffee and cakes,
and spoke enough English to explain her relationship to my
guide. The conversation, .of which I understood but little,
turned on our proposed expedition to Askja, in which they
took great interest, and presently a compass was mentioned ;
I accordingly produced one, and tried to explain that owing to
magnetic variation, the needle did not point to the true north,
but diverged several degrees from it. But my endeavours
to impart so important a geographical fact proved, as might
have been expected, a hopeless task. We did not remain
long here, and were soon en route again, this time leaving the
river valley behind us. At length we arrived at Vidrkser. This
" baer " or house differed from the characteristic farm-build-
ings in Iceland in being all under one roof, instead of having
four or five pointed gables as are commonly seen. Facing
the front were the guest-chamber and a shed with an earthen
floor, answering the purpose of storehouse and workshop.
Here were kept scythes and other implements of husbandry,
side-saddles, and a variety of articles. Outside, nearly oppo-
site the entrance, fixed on a post, was a pair of giant reindeer-
horns, possibly found in the peat. A few paces from the
door, at the foot of a grassy bank, a clear brook, containing
trout, ran swiftly past, securing an abundant supply of
excellent water to the inmates of Vidrkaer and their cattle.
The internal arrangements were modest. A deal table, two or
three chairs, a cupboard with glass doors, a chest of drawers,
and a bedstead comprised the whole of the furniture. Means
of heating there were none. But the guest-room is rarely
inhabited by the family, who occupy a small, stuffy apart-
ment protected from without by a thick wall of turf-sods,

G 2

Summer Travelling in Iceland.

and approached from within by a narrow pass^e opening on
the &rm. The beaver and the Icelander are alike in the
way they accommodate themselves to circumstances, and
make use of the materials within their reach. .Wood has all
to be imported from Norway, and is therefore too expensive
to enter largely into their building operations. But turf is
ready to hand, and when thoroughly sun-dried answers every
purpose of the builder. Walled and roofed in with this, the
dwelling of the Iceland farmer resembles a burrow, proof
against cold and rain, but cramped, low, and unhealthy.
Yet such is his attachment to this home where his forefathers

Jobanna Katrin, Jiin of Vidiluet's wire.

hved before him, possibly since the time when the early
settlers, fleeing from tyranny and oppression, first landed on
the island, that it would require strong inducements to make
him part with it. Emigration to the New World has found
few recruits among this people, and of those who went out to
join the Scandinavian colony in North America, the most
have, according to all accounts, been unfortunate, whilst some

My Guides Wife — Icelandic Poetry. 85

returned, and others would be glad to follow their example
had they the means.

J6n s femily consisted of his wife and six children, from
a big boy by a former marriage down to a child in arms.
The wife, Johanna Katrin, was a fair woman, about 30 years
of age, with a pleasing expression of face and bright, healthy
complexion. She wore the usual Icelandic cap with silken
tassel falling down on one side of her head, and a thick
woollen dress, such as is worn by any Scotch wife. While
busied with household and dairy duties, she would now and
again burst forth into song with a rich and melodious voice.

i*d st6«st i tindi Heklu him, .
Og horSir yfir landiS friSa,
tar sem um graenar grundir liSa
Skinandi ix aS aegi bldm ;
En Loki bundinn beiB i gjdtum
Bjargstuddum undir Jokul-rdtum.
t6tti !>& ekki Island J^
YfirbragSsmiki-S til a^ sjd ?

td rei-Sst um fagran fjalla-dal,
A fdki voknim gotu sldtta,
tar sem viS bdann brattra kletta
iEiSandi fossur eiga tal,
i*ar sem aS una hitt i hliiSum
HjarBir k belt meB lagBi siiSum.
i»6tti l>^r ekki Island pi
Ibiium sinum skemmtun Ijd ?*

Thou stood'st on the peak of Hekla's height,
Fair were the lands that met thy sight,
Where through the verdant meadows glide
Glittering streams towards the ocean tide.
But Loki, fettered, bode in caves,
Bound in the rocks 'neath glacier waves.
O ! seemed not Iceland then to thee
Grand in its features, fair to see ?

* The Icelandic is an exact copy of the authorised edition of J6nas
Hallgrimsson's poems of 1847.

86 Summer Travelling in Iceland.

Thou rod'st through mountain-dales so fair,
Smooth paths thy nimble steed found there ;
Where Echo, child of mountain rocks,
Speaks in the cataract's wild shocks !
And happy on the heights^ the sheep
With flowing fleece, their pastures reap.
O ! seemed not Iceland then to thee
In joys to all its people, free ?

J6n and Johanna Thorkelsson never relaxed in their efforts
to make me feel as much at home as possible during my stay
with them ; for, owing to stress of weather, I remained a day
longer than I intended. When called by J6n at five in the
morning after my arrival, the outlook was most unpromising.
Snow covered everything, the air was thick with fog and
driving sleet, and the wind blew in fierce gusts, calling to mind
a buran on the steppes of Russia. Farming work was inter-
rupted, and men and animals sought shelter. To have ven-
tured out would have been imprudent, but to have attempted
to scale a mountain in such weather would have been the
height of folly. The only thing to be done was to wait
patiently indoors until the storm abated. Now an Iceland
farm is not quite the place for enjoying the dolcefar niente^
and before many hours had passed I began almost to envy
the old woman who milked the sheep, and would have gladly
volunteered to assist Mrs. J6n in churning the butter, had I
commanded sufficient Icelandic to make known my feelings.
As it was, my sole resources were my sketching and books,
one of which was a conversation manual bought at Reyk-
javik, and by its help I contrived to exchange a few words
with my host and hostess, who were at their wits' end to
know how to amuse me. Their little daughter Freda,
decked out in gala dress with that peculiar kind of helmet
and white veil worn by the ladies of Iceland at festive
gatherings, a silver-mounted belt round her waist, and a
velvet collar about her neck, stood with exemplary patience

A Visitor — D^ngjufjoLL 87

for more than an hour while I vainly attempted to sketch her
in my note-book. About the middle of the day we dined off
excellent roast mutton, baked to a turn, and skyr made of
sheep's milk, of all preparations of curds the best ; then
coffee. But before this was served the door of the guest-
room was flung wide open, and a most comical figure stood
at the entrance. He was a man of about 25 or 30, short
and slight, with dark hair and eyes, and sallow complexion.
He wore a brown overcoat, and the invariable knitted com-
forter in thick folds round his neck. Under his arm he
carried a scythe-blade, which he had evidently brought to
sharpen on Jon's grindstone. He stood for some minutes
eying me with a half-puzzled expression on his face ; then,
entering the room, greeted me so warmly that we might have
been friends of 20 years* standing. He forthwith sat down
and began instructing me in his own language, and, from
the few words of English he spoke, appeared to consider
himself a professor in ours — and a very dirty professor he
was; his hands and &ce were grimed with dirt, and his
clothes were in the same state as his person. But he was so
good-humoured and delighted with his lame attempts at
English, that it was impossible to be annoyed at his atten-
tions. In a short time he proposed that we should cement
our friendship in a convivial cup. This, however, with great
gravity I declined, but we remained on as cordial a footing as
ever, and he soon after went away.

The longest day must have an ending, and, retiring
betimes to bed, I prepared for a start early on the morrow.
Askja, or " the Basket," is situated in DyngjufjoU (Bower
Mountains), a rocky group standing up in the barren lava
desert of the (3dd«a-hraun,* about midway between My vatn

* By a slip in the paper read before the Geographical Society, I placed
Askja in M}^atn's Oraefi.

88 Summer Travelling in Iceland.

Lake and VatnajokuU. Its distance from frequented tracks
and inhabited parts may account for its having remained so
long comparatively unknown, while many of the mountains
of Iceland have been explored. Judging from the extent
and age of the lava-floods in and around its rock-encom-
passed basin, Askja must have been the scene of eruptions
many centuries ago ; a long period of inactivity then fol-
lowed; subterranean forces centred in other parts of the
island, and down to the most recent times Askja has passed
unnoticed by writers and travellers in Iceland.* In 1875 a
terrific eruption took place at Askja, accompanied by violent
shocks of earthquake and showers of ashes and pumice, which
destroyed six farms between it and the sea-coast, and covered
a wide extent of territory. Smoke proceeding from the vol-
cano was distinctly seen at Akreyri, 100 miles off, and
flames, or what appeared to be such, were visible at night
a great distance ofl; The eruption began in January, and
the following month Jon of Vidrkaer led a party of men
to Askja, ascending the mountain by the pass named after
him, "J6n's SkartS." It was an enterprise venturesome in
the extreme, for not only had he to find a way in, but once
there, was exposed to great perils. At any moment the earth

• In a brief summary of volcanic eruptions and earthquakes which
have taken place in Iceland within historical times (in the 'Geological
Magazine,* Decade 11. vol. vii. No. 10, p. 458) by Mr. Thorvaldr Tho-
roddsen, whose acquaintance I had the pleasure of making at Reykjavik,
no eruptions are mentioned in DyngjufjoU before 1875, But two are re-
corded to have taken place at Tr611ad)^ngjur in the twelfth century, and three
in the fourteenth. Mr. Thoroddsen, however, adds that this Trolladj^g-
jur is not to be confounded with the northern mountain of this name near
Askja, but must be identified with one of the peaks on the volcanic ridge
of Reykjanes. The repetition of names in Iceland is often confusing, and
must have greatly increased the difficulties of sifting eariier records. With-
out presuming, therefore, to differ with so competent an authority as Prof.
Thoroddsen, I may be allowed to suggest that the dates assigned for the
early recorded eniptions at TroUad^ngjur agree with the appearance of
much of the lava about Askja.

Previous Explorations of Askja. 89

might have opened under his feet and engulfed him in its
abyss, or a shower of burning ashes, steam, and pumice might
have annihilated the explorers. But the inhabitants of vol-
canic countries become accustomed to these phenomena*
Thus Humboldt says that the people of Lima pay no more
attention to earthquakes than if they were hailstorms ; and
Professor Palmieri lately built his observatory on the brink
of the crater of Mount Vesuvius.

Mr. Watts, the explorer of VatnajokuU, in reaching the
northern base of this glacier-covered, mountainous tract, at
the end of June 1875, saw immediately to the north a cluster
of mountains, from which great quantities of steam were
rising and hovering above their summits in a huge mush-
room-shaped cloud.* These were the DyngjufjoU, and he
subsequently made his way to Askja, and from the cliffs en-
closing it on the south looked down upon the craters.f Mr.
W.G. Lock, with whom I compared notes, visited Askja twice,
in 1878 and 1880, and has published an account of all he
saw. J If, therefore, anything new is to be found in the fol-
lowing remarks, it is due to the circumstance that, when I
visited the spot, some changes had taken place. Of the
Danish expedition under Professor Johnstrup, it will be un-
necessary to say more than that they surveyed the new craters
in 1876, and made other observations, which are to be found
in extenso in the ^ Transactions of the Danish Geographical
Society.* Having thus glanced rapidly at the history of
Askja, or so much of it as is known, I proceed with my

* Compare this with the description given by the younger Pliny in his
celebrated letter to Conielius Tacitus, where he likens the same pheno-
menon in the case of Mt Vesuvius to a lofty pine spreading at its summit
into wide shadowing branches. — Humboldt's * Kosmos,' i. 225.

t ^ Journal R. G. S.' voL xlvi. pp. 5 et seqq.

X * Proc. R. G. S.* N.s. vol. iii. pp. 471 «^ seqq. See also a book by
Mr. Lock.

9© Summer Travelling in Iceland.

narrative, premising that my adventures were in no way re-
markable, and that I merely saw and heard all that was
possible in the limited time at my disposal.

The weather was anything but settled when we started : to
the inexperienced eye, indeed, there was nothing to indicate
a change for the better, and the nearest hills were still veiled in
mist and fog. But my guide was evidently satisfied that an
improvement was at hand, for he hastened his preparations,
saddled the ponies, adjusted the packs, and filled two sacks
with hay compressed as tightly as possible. Then, having
swallowed a cup of chocolate, we rode off amid the farewells
of J6n's family. At the last moment, the tall dark farm-
labourer pressed the loan of a pair of warm fingerless gloves
upon me ; for, as he remarked, it would be cold on Dyngju^oll.

Svartakot, the nearest farm to Askja, stands on the Svar-
tar-vatn or " Black lake,*' remarkable for trout of that peculiar
species we had come across at Kngvellir, and quantities of
it were being prepared for winter use, by being split open
and hung on strings to dry. The farmer and miller had served
Mr. W. G. Lock as guide on both occasions of his visiting
the mountain. He and his men were indoors, prevented by
bad weather from mowing the grass and making hay, the
only harvest in Iceland, but of the greatest importance to the
people, for corn will not grow to maturity, and the bread is all
imported either as flour or grain.

We left Svartakot soon after 9 a.m., and rode up the
Sudri, disturbing a pair of wild duck, but seeing no ptarmigan
or willow-grouse. Strips of grass-land occur along the banks
of this stream, but the farther we went, the more contracted
were these, till, on arriving at the sources of the Sudra, we
found the stream issuing from underneath beds of lava-rock,
and forming miniature whirlpools, before pursuing its course
to the north. Leaving this spot, which is marked by a cairn

The OdaSa-hraun — Lava Fields. 91

of stones, we turned in a south-easterly direction, and rode
across the OdalSa^hraun, or Misdeed Lava Desert, supposed to
have been the resort of outlaws ; but whether its bad name is
derived from this circumstance or from the excessive dreari-
ness and desolation surrounding it, I cannot say. It would
be interesting to see a calculation, even roughly made, of the
quantity of molten igneous rock deposited over the surface
of Iceland by all recorded volcanic eruptions. It must be
enormous, if we consider that the lava-flood in the Myvatn's
Oraefi in 1875, connected with Askja, is said to have covered an
area 22 English miles in length, by upwards of 3 in breadth *
Acres of older floods everywhere meet the eye. There is not
a river that does not show in one way or other the eflfects of
igneous action — the Hvita, near Kalmansttinga, flows over a
cracked and fissured lava-bed, and the banks of the ij6rsa,
opposite Hekla, are covered with black volcanic dust — two in-
stances out of many that might be named. Near Hekla, streams
have been entirely hidden by erupted matter, the fish all killed,
and the levels of the country changed ; whilst from the Log-
berg (Law-rock) we looked down into cavernous rifts in whose
depth lay water, reflecting on its stagnant surface the varie-
gated moss-covered rocks towering above. Much of the new
lava is doubtless poured over old, and an occasional subsidence
takes place, but the extent of pasturage must have gready
diminished since the time when the first Norwegian explorers
discovered Iceland, and reported that it was a land flowing
with butter. Ten centuries ago Iceland was a better place to
live in than now, and perhaps ten centuries hence it will have
ceased to be, except as a resort for fishing vessels, or a station
for meteorological observations. But I must apologise for
having left the reader in the midst of the OdaiSa-hraun,

• i

R. G. S. Proc' N. s. vol. iii. No. 12, p. 741.

92 Summer Travelling in Iceland.

through which, guided by the unerring Jon, I rode for about
four hours, until we arrived at a small cone standing at the
foot of some highland.

This was the beginning of DyngjuQoU, and here we halted
for a few minutes before turning our ponies up the ascent.
Fog still enveloped the mountain, hiding all landmarks from
view, and only now and again the sun showed a dull red disc
through the haze ; but these glimpses, momentary as they
were, gave us the right direction. The ascent could not be
called steep — a mountaineer would think nothing of it — but
the recently-fallen snow lay thick on the ground, so we dis-
mounted and led our ponies. Two hours had not passed
from the time we commenced the ascent, and daylight was
beginning to wane as we stumbled into Askja, having missed
the pass in the obscurity. Stopping for a moment, Jon called
my attention to the distant rumbling noise proceeding from
the craters. We had now to pick our way over the rough
rocks along the margin or wall of " the Basket," and selecting a
level spot between some high crags, pitched our tent on snow
and ice at the foot of J6n's SkarS. The weather had become
bright and calm, though cold, and I started ofF on foot to
visit the craters, which were steaming in the distance, intending
to return to camp before nightfall, but after proceeding about
a mile, I was overtaken by J6n, who impressed upon me the
folly of making the attempt. An extraordinary sight was this
huge amphitheatre, 4i miles long by from 2 to 3 wide, filled
with lava-rock, piled up in strange confusion, and contained
within a basaltic rampart, on which stood. here and there peaks
like sentinels, affording an admirable illustration of the geo-
logical formation of Iceland. The basaltic cliffs, abraded and
weatherworn, represented the pre-glacial period, whilst the
igneous rocks of much later date filled the floor of the am-
phitheatre, combining to produce a scene of desolation never

Night on Askja — Iceland Ponies. 93

to be surpassed. No living creature stirred. The only objects
visible were rocks and snow, and far-away thin clouds of
steam rising from the craters to the blue sky. I retired to
rest, but the intense cold (8** F. of frost), the novelty and
impressiveness of the surroundings, made sleep impossible.
.Our ponies, with their fore-legs tightly hobbled, after con-
suming their allowance of hay, decamped during the night.
I saw them go off in single file, scenting their outward tracks
in the snow like hounds, but feeling sure that they would not
stray far over such rough ground in so helpless a condition, I
did not wake J6n, who was sleeping as soundly as though he
lay on a feather bed instead of on the snow, with nothing but
empty hay sacks for a covering and a saddle for a pillow.
Had I known the nature of these animals as well as I do now,
I should not have been so confident.* As it turned out
the errant steeds were re-captured and brought back at
the end of an hour, when, to guard against further accidents,
they were tied together in pairs, the head of one to the tail of
the other.

* We brought home three of our ponies; of these the one named
^' Hekla," when turned out in the same field, kicked a fellow Icelander
belonging to Sir H. Peek, and broke its leg. My dun-coloured steed
named " Askja " obtained comfortable quarters with some fiiends in Kent,
where as soon as it had recovered from the journey and sea-passage, it
displayed a remarkable aggressive disposition, quite out of keeping with its
previous excellent behaviour. One day it attacked a sheep and knocked
it over \ another time it chased the cows till one of these frightened animals
was found panting under a tree. After these escapades "Askja" was
removed to a separate enclosure. Three men were required to catch him,
and before they succeeded he charged a ha-ha or sunk fence, landing with
all four feet on the lawn above. Fortunately the gardener was there to
prevent mischief to the flower beds. This little animal kicked four people
off, including his owner, who tried to ride him, though only 12 hands high.
"Askja" is now in town, and I am told that, however securely he may be
fastened, he contrives to get loose at night and makes his way to the bin
in which his chaff is kept— com he will not touch.

94 Summer Travelling in Iceland.

Meanwhile I had been trying to boil water over a spirit-
lamp, an exercise of patience, for snow had first to be melted
in sufficient quantity to make tea for two cold, hungry men.
Fortified with this and cold mutton smeared with butter, we
started at about six to walk the long Danish mile that sepa-
rated us from the craters. On the way we stopped to admire
HerSubreiS, the broad-shouldered mountain standing out in
solitary grandeur, and bearing E.N.E. from Askja. Its
summit is said to be inaccessible, though we met an American
at Reykjavik who said he had ascended it, and the ^ New York
Tribune,* contained an amusing description of his expedition.
Our progress over the rough lava was greatly assisted by the
recently-fallen snow, and soon after eight we stood on the
pumice crater, a cone thrown up during the recent eruption,
and apparently wholly composed of pumice-sand. Making
our way round to the south side, we lay down with our
bodies inclined at a steep angle and looked over the brink
into the abyss below. Here we saw a large circular pool of
water, boiling furiously. Presently, and without the slightest
warning, a column of steam and water leapt up 200 feet, with
a loud detonation, subsiding again just as suddenly. A steep
descent of 500 feet led to the shore of a large lake, doubtless
formed by water ejected from the craters during eruption.
But whatever its origin may be, the lake, when I saw it, was a
broad sheet of water upwards of four miles in circumference,
deep even round the sides, and transparently clear. The tem-
perature as measured by me proved to be barely over that of
the atmosphere in the shade, or about 54° F. ; but from
the circumstance that my thermometer happened to be a non-
registering one, and that earlier observations by Professor
Johnstrup, and more recently by Mr. W. G. Lock, made it
much greater, it cannot be accepted as conclusive. We stood
on the pumice-covered shore, and looked across the expanse of

The new Craters — Our Return. 95

the lake, limited on the opposite side by tall precipitous cliiFs
which were reflected on its calm surface. Close by, a deep
gorge with steep sides joined the lake, and served to carry off
the drainage from the upper craters. This appeared at first
sight an insuperable barrier to farther progress, and we were
about to give it up as hopeless, when I espied a crack in the
clayey crust, about a foot wide, down which I could crawl.
Here the earth was quite warm, and hot steam issued from the
sides, reminding me of a Russian vapour-bath. I looked
to see if Jon were following, but in a moment he slid down
with great rapidity, landing on his feet at the bottom, where
he was ready to give me a foot up the opposite bank, for
without his assistance, encumbered as I was with long
riding-boots, it would have been impossible to climb to the
summit, so loose and yielding was the sand. Once across the
gorge, we could walk erect up a steep slope to the new craters,
pausing every now and then to pick up a specimen of obsidian,
quartz, and pumice. Of the first of these but little was left,
its weight having caused it to sink into the sand and dis-
appear; quartz is rare, and the pumice, which has a bright
silky look, is mostly pulverised. We soon came to the first of
the new craters, and from its brink looked down upon a
yawning cauldron-like pit filled with steam, which every now
and then escaped with a loud noise firom vents in the sides.
When the steam cleared away sufliciently we could see the
bottom covered with water, agitated in small waves. The
next crater, situated higher up the gorge, presented an even
more extraordinary aspect ; the detonations were louder, and
the sides were stained by gaseous emanations, yellow, green, and
pinky white. This was our &rthest point. A cairn had been
erected here by my guide to commemorate his former visit
in 1875, and the stick carved with his initials, J. i*., which he
had placed in it, fell in pieces when we took it out. Retracing

96 Summer Travelling in Iceland.

our steps, we arrived at the pumice crater, but before scaling
its exceedingly steep cone, down which it had been so easy to
slide, we sat down and shared the remains of some cold mutton,
a flask of sherry, and a small bottle of spirits, which, poured
on handfuls of snow, had repeatedly sustained our energies.
Once again we stood on an eminence overlooking the desolate
scene ; the loud uproar and tumult of the craters had been left
behind, and the silent lava-field of Askja lay before us,
surrounded by ruined walls of basalt.

Icelandic Ijuty't Siiddle;

ReykjaMixS. 97

CHAPTER VIII.

Starting for ReykjahlfS — Fording the Laxd — Mjfvatn — Arriving at Reyk-

jahl^ — A Lively Night — Visit to the Sulphur Springs — On Treacherous

Ground— The Krafla Crater — The new Lava Bed— Snowed up at Eilifs-

vatn — Returning to Reykjahlf6^ a Cold Ride — On the Road for Pverd —

Pverd Church — The Gd^afoss — Arrived at Ljdsavatn.

At eleven o'clock, on the morning of August 24th, we left
our comfortable quarters at Gautlond, and started for Reyk-
jahlfiS. Our route lay along the western side of the small
lake which we had previously passed on our way to the
fishing-place. We were now in search of a local guide to
show us the ford of the LaxS, and were so fortunate as to
find a man who was travelling the same way as ourselves, and
who undertook to pilot us safely over. With a good guide
there seems to be no great danger in crossing this river, which
is here split up into several channels ; to the stranger, how-
ever, it has a very dangerous look, as the ford is on the very
edge of a waterfall, with deep running water on one side, and
a four-foot fall into the rapids on the other ; it is, indeed, in
just the place which a stranger would avoid. The black flies
swarmed here, and would have troubled us a great deal if we
had not been provided with Porter's veils. On reaching the
eastern shore of Myvatn, a scene of indescribable desolation
met the eye. The lake itself, which is of irregular form, and
considerable extent, was as smooth as glass, and reflected
the sombre hills by which it was surrounded, while ash heaps
and extinct craters of all sizes could be seen in every direc-
tion. The very shores of the lake were composed of ashes and
disintegrated lava. The place certainly deserves its name of

98 Summer Travelling in Icela^td.

" Midge-water," for those troublesome insects swarmed round
us in millions, and, being unable to get at our faces, took
their revenge on our hands. After riding along the shore for
about three miles, we turned to the left, round the base of
VindbelgjarQall, and almost immediately came in sight of
numerous tarns, the edges of which were fringed with a
growth of light-green vegetation, among which many
sheep and a few cattle could be seen. We had just sur-
mounted a slight elevation, when, on looking in the plain
before me, I saw a fine black-and-white setter ranging in
front of its master, who was evidently not an Icelander, and,
on drawing nearer, I recognised Mr. W. G. Lock, who has
visited Iceland several times, and was now on his way to the
Lax& for a few days' fishing. This gentleman kindly gave us
some useful information about the surrounding country, and,
after a few minutes' conversation, we parted. After passing
over the usual number of swamps and lava beds, we reached a
well-made bridle-path, and, turning sharply round to the east,
started off at a quick trot, reaching the church-farm of Reyk-
jahlf$ at 4.30.

This farm is situated close to the northern end of Myvatn,
on a patch of grass land in the midst of lava beds, and the
owner, who is well known as " Big-Peter," has a vast tract of
land, on which he pastures the sheep of his neighbours for a
trifling charge per head, but by far the greater portion of his
property is a barren desert. Our intention had been to visit
some sulphur springs after getting something to eat, but J6n,
Big-Peter's son, could not go with us, as he had some work to
do, and his father was away in the mountains haymaking; so
we had to make up our minds to postpone our visit until the
next morning, and one of the females of the family set about
preparing our dinner, by bringing out a dried stockfish and
pounding it on an anvil with a sledge-hammer for about five
minutes. When cooked it was not at all bad, but rather

A Lively Night. 99

stringy and tough; what it would have been without the
aforesaid pounding which it received at the hands of the
muscular maiden, was not difficult to imagine. Zoega in«
formed us that this was the proper way to prepare it for the
table, and no one could eat it until it had undergone this
hammering process.

In the guest chamber where we were to sleep, there was
one bed in a recess in the wall. Morgan chose the sofa, I the
floor, for the simple reason that I have never yet been able to
sleep comfortably in a bed not five feet long, and Peek deter-
mined to give the bed a trial. This being settled, we spread
our blankets out, and I was not long before I fell asleep, but
my slumbers were not to be undisturbed.

Not liking the appearance of the floor, I had scattered
" Keating's Insect Powder ** broadcast before I turned in. I
was first aroused by hearing some one moving about in the
room, and on asking who it was, found that Morgan had
been fairly turned oflf the sofa by the fleas, and I, being now
wide awake, became aware of certain races that were taking
place all over my body, varied by sharp nips, which clearly
indicated how much a meal oflf the stranger was appreciated.
Such a night may I never pass again ! I have slept in North
American Indian lodges, and had always believed that they
stood unrivalled as places in which to pass a lively night, but
I greatly erred, for they are not in the hunt when compared
with the guest chamber of ReykjahliiS. I was rejoiced when
the time came to get up, and being quite feverish after my
unavailing nocturnal struggles, I went outside in quest of
some cold water to bathe my head, and found our three
men standing at the door with woe-begone faces. Zoega
declared that in all his experience he had never passed such
a night ; this was saying a good deal, for the guides generally
sleep in the " baSstofa," or common sleeping room, which is
seldom as clean as it should be.

H 1

loo Summer Travelling in Iceland.

It was with a feeling of relief that I saw our horses
brought in to be packed and saddled, and at eight o*clock
we set out for the sulphur deposits and mud springs
of Hlf5arn4mar, taking J6n with us to show the way,
and sending on the pack-train to EiUfevatn, where we in-
tended to camp for the night, after visiting the chief places
of interest in the neighbourhood. After riding about five
miles we came to the first of the sulphur deposits ; steam
was issuing from holes in the ground, wherever they existed,
and, dismounting to examine them, we found in several
instances large crystals of almost pure sulphur. On the
sides of a hill there was a large yellow mass, more than a
yard in diameter, which was so friable, that pieces of it I
knocked off with my whip-handle were easily crumbled in
the hand. As we had several other places to visit during
the day, I had no time to make a rough survey of this system
of springs, much as I should like to have done so. Though
these sulphur deposits seem, to a casual observer like myself,
to be practically inexhaustible, they are at present of little
real value from their inaccessibility. The English Govern-
ment sent Admiral Sir E. Commerell, in 1857, ^^ report
upon the character of the Icelandic sulphur mines, and the
conclusion arrived at was, that they were too far from an
accessible port to be worth working. This, however, has cer-
tainly not always been the case, for it was from the sulphur
mines in the vicinity of Myvatn that, in the beginning of
the seventeenth century, Frederick II., King of Denmark,
obtained a large amount of this mineral, as much as 400 tons
being annually exported, to be used in the gunpowder mills
of Denmark. During the reign of Christian IV., the mines
fell into the hands of private owners, and from that time to
the present day have never been successfully worked, nor do
I think that they would ever prove to be a commercial success
(even if good roads were made to the coast) while such large

Visit to the Sulphur Springs. loi

supplies of this mineral can be obtained from countries which
are accessible to shipping at all seasons of the year, and where
there is no severe winter to put a stop to mining operations.

Leaving this place, we passed over NdmaQall, from the
summit of which a truly wonderful scene presented itself to
our view. On looking to the right, we saw steam issuing
with great force from several holes in the side of the mountain,
which was bright yellow and light red for a considerable dis-
tance below the springs. The surrounding plain looked for all
the world as if it had been covered with a coating of Portland
cement, being quite white in some places, and light brown in
others ; and at a short distance from the foot of the mountain
were a number of conical craters, from which the steam
poured forth in intermittent jets. Away in the distance
nothing but lava-beds and sand-plains could be seen, but to
the left the whole country had a fertile appearance which it
did not deserve, caused by the whortleberry bushes, which
grew in the interstices of the old lava.

On descending into ' the plain, we turned to the right to
visit the HlfiSarn&mar system, which we had seen from the top
of the mountain, and after proceeding for a short distance,
on ground which sounded ominously hollow as we passed
over it, J6n told us that the horses could go no farther ;
so we dismounted, and our stupid guide let us proceed
on foot towards the springs, without giving us one word
of warning as to the dangerous nature of the ground in the
vicinity of the craters. At first we walked along at a brisk
pace, but we soon saw the necessity of proceeding with cau-
tion, as the crust over which we were passing began to give
way, and when once broken, steam immediately issued
through the fractures, giving a tolerably correct notion of
what our fate would be if we fell through into the boiling
mass below. We reached the principal crater without acci-
dent, and ascended its wall to have a look a^ the spring, which

I02 Summer Travelling in Iceland.

we had heard roaring and spluttering long before we got to
it. On looking down, we saw a basin of liquid black mud,
about 6 feet in diameter, in a violent state of ebullition, from
the centre of which, ever and anon, columns of mud were
projected to the height of about i o feet, accompanied by such
groans, that one could almost imagine they proceeded from
some imprisoned demon struggling to get free, and we plainly
saw the manner in which the walls of the crater had been
built up by the splashes of mud ejected from the spring. As
near as I could estimate, this system of mud-springs covers
a space of about ten acres. We intended to visit all of
them, and five or six had already been inspected, when, as I
was leading the way to another, I heard Morgan call out,
"By Jove, Peek is in!" and on looking round, saw that he
was ankle-deep in the boiling-hot, slate-coloured mud, which
lies immediately beneath the crust.

However, he had on thick riding-boots, and, like a wise
man, did not hesitate for a moment, or it would have been a
serious matter for him, but struggled out, and after breaking
through once more, reached a place where the ground was
firmer. Morgan had to follow, and he also broke through
the crust, but got safely over. Just as I was congratulating
myself on my escape, I felt the ground giving way under me,
but by making a jump I succeeded in gaining a safe place.
It would have been a bad job for me if I had gone through,
as I had on low shoes, and my feet must have been seriously
scalded. We afterwards heard of a gentleman who was so
severely burned, under similar circumstances, that he was laid
up for six months at Reykjavik, and even thep his burns were
not healed.

Some of the mud from these springs has been brought
to England, and when analysed, was found to contain a large
percentage of copper, not sufficient, however, to warrant any
expenditure of capital in its production.

An Extinct Crater. 103

Having returned to J6n, we mounted our horses and
started oiF at a sharp gallop in the direction of Krafla, and on
reaching some sheep-huts, in a valley where there was plenty
of grass, we changed our horses and at once began to ascend
this mountain, which, like the hills surrounding the base of
Hekla, is an immense heap of dark sand and stones. When
about haltway up, we came upon the tracks of reindeer, and
also caught sight of several sulphur springs in the mountain
side, having the usual yellow and red deposits round the vents
from which the steam issued. At 700 feet from the summit,
we came upon an immense extinct crater, about 100 yards in
diameter, at its rim, containing a large pool of the clearest
water. When Henderson visited this place in 18 14, he de-
scribed it as bemg a circular pool of black liquid matter,
about 300 feet in circumference, from the centre of which a
vast column of black liquid was thrown up to the height of
30 feet. These eruptions took place every five minutes, and
lasted about three. All this has now changed : the water, as
I have said, is beautifully clear and icy cold ; the pool has also
much diminished in size, and lies at the bottom of the crater,
fully 200 feet below the edge on which we stood. It is a
favourite resort of the few reindeer that are now left in this
part of Iceland. I say few, for these much-himted animals
have shown their wisdom in seeking pastures new in the un-
frequented desert on the east side of the Jokulsa, only some of
the more foolish beasts remaining in this locality, where they
are being slowly, but surely, exterminated. I may also
mention that J6n informed me, with a very grave face, that
the devil lived here.

We were now 2200 feet above sea-level, and the weather
had become very cold, with a biting north wind, and some
snow. As we ascended higher, the cold increased, so that I
was by no means sorry when, passing over to the eastern side

104 Summer Travelling in Iceland.

of the mountain, close to its summit, we began to descend,
and shortly after came to a hill which had the appearance of
being composed of blocks of jet. This was the so-called
Obsidian mountain ; it is, however, not more than 300 feet
high ; its proper name is Hrafntinnuhryggr. We dismounted
and climbed up its sides, until we came to a block of obsi-
dian, at least 8 feet square. Caution was necessary in walking
on this substance, for the smaller pieces not only resembled
broken glass bottles in appearance, but also in the sharp
edges of some of the fragments.

We next turned to the north-east, in order to visit the
new lava-beds, which are supposed to have flowed by a sub-
terranean passage from Askja in 1875. But here we met with
a difficulty. J6n declared that we could not reach the lava
that day ; he said it was twenty-five miles off, and that we
should not get to our tent at Eilifsvatn before midnight.
We, however, insisted, and Zoega backed us, so J6n had
most unwillingly to give way, and off we started. After
travelling for five hours and a half over sandy plains and old
lava-beds, we came to the bridle-path, which is dignified by
the name of the " eastern road.*' It was in places very well
made, and we began to make up for lost time by proceeding
at a steady canter. In about two hours more we came in
sight of the new lava, which could easily be distinguished from
the older lava-beds by its colour, which is nearly black. By
half-past four we had reached the place where the horses were
to be left, so we dismounted and walked to the lava, the northern
end of which was about a quarter of a mile distant from the
road. The ground all round us was covered with ashes about
the size of a walnut, and the scant vegetation still bears traces
of the intense heat given out by the molten lava. A curious
feature in connection with this lava is, that the ground over
which it flowed has been depressed more than 20 feet below

The New Lava Bed. 105

the surrounding country, as if the superimposed weight had
forced it down, and this depression is continued for a consider-
able distance beyond where the lava-stream ends, being clearly
marked by an immense rift, or gja on either side. I observed
the same depression near Kngvellir, between the Almannagjd
and Hrafnagjd. The lava appears to have flowed in a direc-
tion nearly due N. and S., and terminated at a point about a
quarter of a mile from the eastern road. I fixed the northern
point of the stream by the bearings of Haugr, Btirfell,
Jorundr, Grimsta%ir-naup, and HliiSarQall ; and as these were
particularly good marks for bearings, I think the position
indicated on the map may be taken to be very nearly cor-
rect. The dimensions of the lava were given to me by J6n
of Reykjahli?, as being twenty miles long and four wide, and
he is probably better acquainted with this portion of the
country than any other living man. On a near approach this
lava presents the appearance of an immense area of slag, of
gigantic proportions, standing up in sharp, jagged blocks,
which forbid any attempt to traverse it.

After leaving the lava we struck across country for our
camp, and as J6n predicted a fall of snow, we galloped
as hard as we could. In many places the ground was
so rough, that it would hardly have been safe to walk an
English horse over it; but my hardy little beast made
nothing of it, and so we arrived at the tent just as the
snowstorm commenced. The place where we camped was
close to a deserted farmhouse, the roof of which had fallen
in; there was, however, plenty of fuel to be got, so we
cooked our dinner, and hoping that the snow would soon
leave oflf and allow us to get on to Dettifoss in the morning,
we laced up the tent-door and turned in.

Waking at an early hour the next morning, I became
aware of the peculiar stillness which usually accompanies a
fall of snow; so getting up and looking round I saw the

io6 Summer Travelling in Iceland.

whole country covered with it to the depth of several inches,
and it was in such a hurry to invade the tent, that I was
forced to lace up the door again to keep our unwelcome visitor
out. There was an end to our hopes of reaching Dettifoss on
this day, and the only provisions we had were some tea and a
small quantity of black bread, as we had counted on reaching
the farm of Svlnadalr, which is on the other side of Dettifoss,
during the course of the day. Under these circumstances we
were naturally anxious to proceed, and so we took counsel
with the guide J6n as to what we had better do; he de-
clared his willingness to return to Reykjahli?, but flatly told
us that nothing would induce him to start for Dettifoss in
a snowstorm, as we should be sure to lose ourselves in the
mountains. We were determined not to go back, if we
could possibly avoid doing so, and therefore concluded to
wait where we were in hopes that the weather would im-
prove. J6n, however, prophesied that it would not, and
further informed us that, even if it left off snowing there and
then, the mountain trail would be obliterated for some days
to come, and that he would not attempt to go to Dettifoss
until he could see the trail plainly.

I have said that there was plenty of fuel to be got in this
place, but I must qualify the statement by saying that this is
only the case in dry weather, as the small stems of the dwarf
willow become so saturated with rain or snow that it would
be quite impossible to ignite them, and such we found to
be the case in the present instance. There were some timber
and broken planks in the ruined house ; but these belonged
to J6n, who would in no wise consent to our making a fire
with them, but after much persuasion he gave us just enough
to boil some tea, and with this and a small portion of black
bread we made our breakfast. The temperature was now
below freezing, and the snow continued to fall without inter-
mission, so we tried to find a more comfortable place than

Snowed up at EiUfsvatn. 107

the tent, inside the ruins of the house, and following out the
Icelandic method of getting warm, we all assembled in one
little room which was in a better state of repair than the
rest of the place. As it was rather dull work sitting down
and looking at one another, I proposed that we should have
a song, and set the example by inflicting one on the
assembled company ; thus encouraged, Evandr began to
roar a song of heaven knows how many verses; then
Zoega took his turn, and after that we all sang the Spren-
gisandr song together. J6n had not done his part, but after
some persuasion, suddenly burst forth with Luther's grand
hymn, " Great God, what do I see and hear ! " He had a
very fair voice, and all the others joined him; the words
they sang were of course Icelandic, but as interpreted to me
by Zoega, were nearly identical with those to be found in
our own hymn-books. The guides seemed quite pleased to
find that we knew the air, and sang several other hymns,
asking me each time if I had ever heard that before. I
was obliged to confess that I had not ; they were very simple,
but I liked them all the better for that. After a bit, Evandr
began singing some songs, which I, of course, could not
understand ; but from the laughter they created, I am sure
at least that they were not hymns. Having quite tired our-
selves with singing, I, at the request of the guides, began to
tell them something about California and Oregon, in which
they took great interest, as many Icelanders have emigrated
to those parts; but, according to Zoega, most had come
back to Iceland, preferring the sterility, hardships, and cold
of their native country to the splendid climate and fertile
lands of those two most favoured States.

The golden plover, which had assembled in thousands
round our camping-place, were incessant with their mournful
cries, and though Morgan took his gun to try and get some,
the snow was falling so fast that it prevented his getting a

io8 Summer Travelling in Iceland.

shot, as they disappeared from sight in the mist directly an
attempt was made to approach them.

By this time any little hope that had been entertained of
reaching Dettifoss was given up ; our time was limited, and
having nothing of any kind left to eat, we were forced to
give in to J6n's suggestion as to returning to Reykjahli*, for
it seemed certain that if we remained where we were much
longer, and if the snow continued to fall, we should not be
able to go either backwards or forwards. So having told
Zoega to get the horses up early next morning, we returned
to our tent, and, though it was still quite early, we rolled
ourselves up in our blankets to get warm, and I was not long
before I fell into a sleep, from which I did not awake until
early the next morning.

August I'jth. — ^The wind was blowing hard from the
north-west and driving the snow about like so much white dust,
but at seven we struck our tent, and had to stand about in
the snow for an hour before all the horses were packed and
ready to start. We were now only one thousand feet above
the sea-level, with the thermometer four degrees below freezing,
and, as we had to pass over some mountains, we anticipated
a cold ride, the more so, as our feet, or perhaps I should
only speak for myself, and say my feet, were uncomfortably
cold with standing about in the snow. Leaving the pack-
train to follow us, we started off for ReykjahliU, taking J6n
for our guide : we travelled as rapidly as we could, but had to
proceed with caution, as the snow, which was still falling, hid
the fissures and holes in the lava-beds ; at last we began to
ascend the mountain, and our anticipations of a cold ride
proved to be perfectly correct ; my beard was frozen quite
hard, and my spectacles had every now and then to be
thawed by placing them against my forehead, as my breath,
which froze on them, rendered them quite useless. When-
ever we could get any shelter from the biting wind, the tern-

Return to ReykjahliS. 109

perature rose rapidly ; and at last, on reaching the valley
between Dalljall and SandabolnaQoll, we came into quite
another climate ; the snow ceased, the sun shone out, and the
thermometer rose to 43° F. We now pushed on at a good
pace and reached ReykjahliiS at one o'clock. Some skyr, a
good hot cup of coffee, and a capital omelet, quite set us up
again, and we started out, on foot, to visit a curious gji, or
rift, in the vicinity of the lava, which flowed from Leivhntikr
in 1729. On descending into this rift, we found a natural warm
bath in a cave, round the entrance of which I observed
several beautiful little ferns growing luxuriantly, and, on our
way back to the house, J6n, who had accompanied us, took
us to see one of the places where he kept his sheep in winter.
It was entered by a small hole in the ground, which led to a
spacious cavern in the lava-bed, capable of holding about one
hundred and fifty sheep. As we had to wait for the pack-train
to come in, I went down to the lake, Myvatn, and was aston-
ished to see how tame the wild fowl had become ; they took
very little notice of me ; the reason of this was afterwards
explained in the fact that they are strictly preserved by Jon,
as their eggs form a valuable addition to the commissariat
of ReykjahliiS. The lake also furnishes an abundant supply
of trout, which are taken in nets, and some of these were spread
out to dry on the lava ; they were about thirty feet long by
five deep, and weighted at the bottom with sheep's bones
instead of plummets. Returning to the house, I found that
the pack-train had arrived, and as Zoega and the other men
were anxious to push on, " for," said Zoega, " if we stop here
to-night, we get no sleep, the flea so plenty!" and as our
past experience bore witness to the truth of this statement, we
made up our minds to start for Werd, on our way to Akreyri,
after giving the horses a short rest ; and accordingly by three
o'clock we were on the move again.

Soon after starting, we came to some nice, clear-looking

I lo Summer Travelling in Iceland.

pools of water, and thinking that our horses might be thirsty,
we stopped to let them drink. I was mounted on my knowing
old horse, and I fancied that he approached the water in a
somewhat cautious manner, but as the ground seemed to be
perfectly hard and sound, I took little notice of this ; he had
just begun to drink, when I felt his forefeet sinking, and the
clever old beast at once wheeled round on his hind legs in
the most deliberate manner. Morgan was watering his horse
close to me, and, as mine turned round, I heard a splash,
and looking round I saw that he had flung himself clear of
his horse, which was, to all appearance, sinking in the pool,
while its rider had just managed to land on firm ground, and
was on his feet in an instant; had he been less active, or
an inexperienced rider, it might have gone hard with him,
for, had he pitched head foremost into the treacherous quag-
mire we could have done nothing to help him, and he would
soon have been suffocated, for it was only by making violent
efforts that his horse, which was a very strong one, was able
to extricate himself, although it was never more than six feet
from the place on which we were standing. However, all's
well that ends well ; the horse did get out, and, with the ex-
ception of an uncomfortable ducking, Morgan was none the
worse. After three hours' ride over a sandy, stony desert,
with a cutting north wind blowing in our faces and raising
the usual clouds of dust, we came upon signs of vegetation,
which denoted our approach to the valley of the Laxa, and
were soon descending by a precipitous, slippery path to the
ford. Evandr led the way, having previously fortified him-
self by fiUing his nose full of snufF, and in five minutes more
we had arrived at the church-farm of i^'eri, the owner of
which received us most kindly. We were shown into a well-
furnished room, and after having had a good wash, our host
invited us up into his sanctum, where there was a nice fire
burning in the only stove that I have ever seen in an Ice-

Pverd.

I II

landic farm-house. There was an air of comfort and refine-
ment about the whole place that one would hardly have
expected to find ; the rooms were nicely furnished, and there
was a goodly number of books on the shelves. Nor was it
all outward show, for in a short time dinner was announced,
and we were served with soup, fish, and mutton; this was
followed by some capital coffee and cakes, our host all the
time standing by to see that we had all we required. When
we had finished, he again asked us up to his room to smoke
our pipes in comfort over the fire, and afterwards showed us
three comfortable beds that had been prepared for us, to
which we retired, and after having enjoyed a good night's rest,
we were called by one of the daughters, who brought coffee
and cakes into the room.

This day, August 28th, being Sunday, we stayed to attend
divine service in the little church, and shortly before eleven,
the neighbouring farmers and their wives began to assemble.
They could be seen coming from all directions ; at last the
minister arrived, and then all went into the church, which
would probably seat one hundred people. All the service was
chanted, and there were some good voices among the choir,
the person who performed on the harmonium leading them.
The minister wore a surplice and red cope, with a large gold
cross, during the first part of the service, but changed it for a
black preaching gown before going into the pulpit. There
was a christening in the middle of the service, the father
holding the infant, which was handed to the mother by the
minister after it was baptised. The inside of the church was
very nice and clean, but there was a great deal of blue and
yellow paint about the building, which gave it a gaudy
appearance, not at all in keeping with the simple dress of the
congregation, who throughout behaved in a very reverent
manner. They, however, went in and out of the church
during the service just as they pleased, and a good many left

112 Summer Travelling in Iceland.

before the end. I think this was owing to the great length of
the service, which lasted two hours ; half of the time being
occupied by the sermon.

On coming out of church, we found that Mr. W. G. Lock
had arrived, and as he was also on his way to Akreyri, we
agreed to travel together. When the minister (who is also a
farmer) came out, I was introduced to him ; his place. Green-
ja«arsta?r, is about six miles farther down the river, where
there is good trout fishing, and very comfortable quarters
in his house, and I was informed that he is always happy
to do his best to make his visitors welcome. If what I
have heard is true, and I have no reason to doubt it, his
neighbour, also a minister and a church dignitary, is one of
the solitary examples of want of hospitality to be met with
in Iceland. Having quarrelled with one Englishman, he has
fostered so much ill feeling towards travellers of the same
nationality, that he has closed his door against them all, and I
was warned not to go to Mtili on that account. This surely
is wrong in one of his calling, and is most certainly in direct
opposition to the teaching of the Great Master whom he
professes to serve. I can only hope that there may be some
mistake, and that he may have other, and better reasons for
denying that hospitality to strangers, which would be extended
to them by the poorest farmer in Iceland.

At three o'clock we started for Lj6savatn, the whole of the
country through which we passed being covered with whortle-
bushes and dwarf willow. Before reaching the valley of the
Skjalfendaflj6t, Morgan and Lock had shot eight brace of
ptarmigan, and I have no doubt might have shot many more
had they left the road. Lock had a capital setter, and,
though the birds were very numerous, I think it probable
that without the dog they would hardly have seen one.

There is a story about these birds that Zoega told me,
which is very quaint, and is as follows :

Goda/oss. 113

The falcon and ptarmigan are really brother and sister.
The latter knows this, and takes no great pains to avoid her
brother; but the falcon does not know it — he therefore pounces
on his sister and tears her to pieces. It is only when he . lays
bare her heart that he sees how much she loved him, and that
is the reason why the falcon always flies away screaming after
having killed a ptarmigan.

As we began to descend from the Flj6tshei«i, I observed
a column of what I took to be steam in the valley below, and
inquired of Zoega what was the name of the hot spring from
which it proceeded. I then learnt that it was the mist rising
from the Go^afoss, as this fall of the Skjdlfandailj6t is called.
We were so high up that the river, though of considerable
size, appeared to be quite an insignificant stream, and the path
by which we had to descend was so steep that we were obliged
to dismount, and in consequence made such slow progress,
that it was beginning to get dusk before we reached the ford.

Having secured the services of a local guide to take us to
the GoiSafoss, and telling Zoega to go on to the farm at
Lj6savatn, where we intended to spend the night, Peek and
myself set off at a gallop to see the falls, and arrived there in
about twenty minutes. Though it cannot be compared to
the GuUfoss, it is a very grand sight, as the river at this
place is broad, and the volume of water considerable. The
fall is divided by an island which stands in the middle ; it is
about fifty feet deep, and semicircular in shape. At about
one hundred yards below the fall, the river rushes through a
caiion, sixty feet wide. It is here that a suspension bridge is
in course of construction, as this river is often impassable at
the ford, to the loss and inconvenience of the people in the
neighbourhood. When we were there but little progress had
been made ; two chains had been stretched across the gorge,
from which some inch boards had been suspended. We
crossed the river on them, but in so doing it was necessary to

114 Summer Travelling in Iceland.

keep fast hold of the chain, as they were very unsteady. As
soon as we had seen all we wanted, we returned to a place where
there was a small boat, and having taken our saddles off the
horses, we drove them into the river, across which they swam,
while we followed in the boat. On arriving at the opposite
bank, we found Zoega waiting for us, and I was not at all
sorry to see him, as it was getting dark, and I had but very
indistinct ideas as to the direction of the farm to which our
pack-train had been sent on; indeed, Zoega himself missed
the trail, and we had to make for it in a straight line over
a rather rough piece of country. However, we arrived at
Lj6savatn at last, and after the usual meal of skyr, coffee, and
black bread, we spread our blankets on the floor of the guest
chamber, and were soon fast asleep.

Ljdsavatn. 115

CHAPTER IX.

Ljdsavatn Church — Hdls — Arrival at Akreyri — Shark Oil Factory — Icelandic
Trading Company s Establishment — Polar Bears — General Description
of Akreyri — An Unpleasant Affair — Mff&ruveUir Technical College — The
dxnctdalr — Steinstc^ir — New Roads — Arriving at Miklibcer — A
Wedding — Fording the Herct^svotn — A Pleasant Ride^The Story of
" Grettir the Strong,''

August i()th. — The farmer at Ljdsavatn seems to have de-
voted much of his time to wood carving, and the guest-
room bore evidence of this by the manner in which it was
decorated ; the patterns were all angular, and coloured bright
blue and red. After breakfast we went out to have a look at
the church, which was a most primitive structure, both walls
and roof being covered with several feet of turf; the farmer
must have spent many days in carving the screen which
separates the chancel from the body of the church. The
pulpit, which is carved all over, is let into the screen, so that
the minister must preach through a sort of window, and
the whole interior of the church was painted blue, white,
and red. When not used for divine service, it appears to
serve as a general store and drying-room, as clothes were
hung all over it, and in the little gallerj there were five
or six spinning-wheels.

At half-past eight we left the farm, and skirting Lj6savatn
(lake of light), we travelled over a tolerably good track
through a beautiful country, and all the farms we passed
seemed to be well kept. The day was warm and fine, so we
thoroughly enjoyed our ride, and reached Hdls at noon,

I 2

1 1 6 Summer Travelling in Iceland.

where we halted to change horses, and get our own midday
meal of skyr and coffee. There is a resident minister here, and
the church is the largest, and best kept, that I have seen in the
country districts. The little churchyard contains some very
curious tombstones ; they consist of oblong blocks of stone,
in their rough state ; the lettering has been carved on them,
and the stones simply laid on the graves. After leaving Hals,
we descended into the valley of the Fnjoska, and passed the
only timber of any size that I have seen in Iceland, consist-
ing of dwarf birch-trees, about as thick as a man*s arm and
ten feet high. We crossed the Fnjdska, which has a bad
rocky bottom, but, owing to the season having been excep-
tionally dry, we found no difficulty in fording it, and at once
began to ascend the VaSlaheiSi, on the other side of which
is Akreyri ; I measured the ascent, and found it to be 1 780
feet, while the descent on the western side to the EyjafjarSara
was 2230 feet.

The view from the summit of the Va«lahei«i was very
line ; to the right, and on the other side of the Eyjai^^rtSr, lay
Akreyri ; directly opposite was a range of mountains, and
away to the left, as far as the eye could reach, wound the
river along the green valley, with numerous farms dotted
here and there along its banks. At three o'clock we had
reached the banks of the EyjaljartSard, which we crossed by
five fords ; the tide was out, and the river low, so that we had
no trouble in getting to the other side ; it is, however, a very
difficult river to cross in rainy seasons, or when the tide is in,
and often causes vexatious delays. We arrived in Akreyri
at four o'clock, and put up at Jensen's hotel, which, though
small, is very comfortable and clean, while the landlord, an
old Danish soldier, is a very civil and obliging man. The
day had been beautifully fine, and the wind from the south,
which was a fortunate circumstance for us, as had it been

Akreyru 117

from the north-west, we should have suffered a good deal
from cold and snow on the mountains, as we were told that
the Arctic ice was only eight Danish miles off the North Cape.
We experienced some difficulty in finding a place where we
could turn the horses out to graze, and were I ever to visit
Akreyri again, I should arrange with one of the farmers on
the other side of the river to take charge of the horses, before
entering the town, and send them back to his place after
they were unpacked, as I should in this manner escape the
exorbitant charges of the townspeople.

After breakfast, on the morning following our arrival, we
set out to inspect the place. It is the town of second im-
portance in Iceland, and till a short time since, was the seat
of a bishopric ; now, however, the whole episcopal jurisdic-
tion is centred at Reykjavik. The first place we visited was
the Icelandic Trading Company's establishment, which is
situated at the entrance of the harbour on a sand-spit, about
a mile distant from the town ; the road to it leads along the
side of the water, and when about half-way, we came to a
factory where shark-oil is made : the smell of this place is
simply intolerable, and, if the wind blows in the direction of
the town, pervades everything. I was informed that this oil
makes its appearance in the European markets as cod-liver
oil, and I have no doubt it is true, for, to my own knowledge,
the San Francisco market used to be annually supplied with
thousands of gallons of dog-fish oil, which was sold as
the best cod-liver. Large numbers of sharks are captured
off the coast; they are caught with hook and line, at the
depth of nearly one hundred fathoms, several schooners of
about seventy tons burden being employed in this fishery.
Passing by this strong-smelling place as quickly as possible,
we turned to the right, along the sand-spit on which the
store and residence of the servants of the Icelandic Company
are situated. The store itself is an imposing building, and

ii8 Summer Travelling in Iceland.

the Company appears to do a large trade ; it much reminded
me of the Hudson*s Bay Company's stores in its general
arrangements, as well as in the variety of articles offered for
sale. After having made a few small purchases, I entered
into conversation with a gentleman belonging to the esta-
blishment, who had spent some years in Scotland, and he in-
formed me that during the winter of 1 880-81, the ther-
mometer had stood for some time at 25^ below zero of
Fahrenheit, and that polar bears became quite common in
the neighbourhood of Akreyri. After leaving the store, we
walked to a very beautiful fall, about a mile distant, where
the Gleri, a small river, plunges into a very narrow gorge of
considerable depth ; it is spanned by a wooden bridge, from
which a good view of the fall can be obtained.

On our return to the town, we visited the printing and
bookbinding establishment of this place ; all the work is car-
ried on in a small cottage, but some of it is, nevertheless, very
creditable. The next object of interest we inspected was the
church, which is a large building, and appeared to have been
recently built ; it is painted in the usual manner, blue and
white, with a considerable amount of gilt about the chancel
and pulpit ; I should say that it is capable of seating three
hundred people, and is evidently well cared for, as it was very
nice and clean.

As I wished to get a general view of the town. Peek and
myself ascended the hill at the back, by a zig-zag path,
on each side of which were numerous patches of heartsease,
many of them more than six feet square, the flowers them-
selves being much larger than the wild pansies we commonly
meet with in England. On arriving at the summit, the
whole of Akreyri lay below us, and I counted more than a
hundred stores and dwelling-houses ; all the side of the hill
was covered with potato-gardens, and Jensen told me that this
most useful vegetable was very successfully cultivated here.

Akreyri. 119

This is doubtless owing to its sheltered position ; indeed from
the name Akreyri, which means corn-land, it would seem that
some kind of grain was once cultivated, but this has long
ceased to be the case, very possibly for the reason, that,
with the increased con^munication with the outer world,
it was found that the supply of imported grain could be
depended upon, and that the land, ill-suited at the best of
times to its cultivation, could be turned to better purpose by
putting it to its present use. However this may be, certain
it is, that not one acre of grain is raised throughout Iceland*
As we were walking along the top of the hill on our way back
to the hotel, we came to the cemetery, and here, as else*
where in this country, I was much struck with the neglected
state of the graves : here was a tombstone lying flat on the
ground between two graves, so that it would be difficult to
say to which it belonged; there might be seen another, of
white marble, kept in its position by a piece of wood like a
broken clothes-prop; while fragments of head*boards could
be seen in all directions. The impression left on my mind
was, that these good people, having buried their dead, and
placed some record of the fact on their graves, had, on leaving
the cemetery, wiped all remembrance of them out of their
memories. The only exception to the general state of neg-
lect, were the graves of some strangers, sailors, who had once
belonged to French men-of-war ; some one had evidently kept
them in order, and I was glad to see that poor Jack's last
resting-place had been carefully tended.

The next building to the hotel was the hospital ; there
were, however, no patients in it, and the person in charge was
good enough to allow me to have a warm bath there, for
which he made a very moderate charge. The gaol, like the
hospital, had no occupants, except the person in charge ; the
building in which it is situated serves also as a court-house,
public library, and assembly-room. It is about the size of

I20 Summer Travelling in Iceland,

an ordinary ten-roomed cottage in England. The portion
intended to be used as a prison has four cells, which seem
to have been built with every consideration for the prisoners'
comfort ; they contain a hammock, a table, and seat, and the
arrangements for warming them seem to be very complete.
They are, indeed, perfect palaces as compared with most of the
country houses. The only drawback to a residence in Akreyri
gaol appears to be the diet, which consists entirely of bread
and water ; if it were not for this, there might be many worse
places for a lazy man to spend his time, especially as pri-
soners have no work to do. The room in which the court
is held is also the public library, containing some hundreds
of volumes, many of which were the Reports of American
Societies.

Though nearly all trades are represented in Akreyri, there
are no shops such as we have in England. The merchants
carry on their business in barn-like buildings, where almost
anything can be purchased, and the tradesmen do their
work in their cottages, without making any outward show
of their different callings. During our stay, the people were
very busy laying in their stock of peat-fuel for the winter,
and the narrow paths between the houses were sometimes full
of the pack-horses, which were employed to bring it in from
the country. The hotel at which we stayed was very clean
nnd comfortable; it consists of two parts, the older being
that in which Jensen commenced business. It has a door in
the middle ; the dining-room on one side, the bar on the other,
and a bedroom overhead, which is reached by a ladder ; to this
has been added a square house, built of wood. The ground
floor is a billiard-room, and above are four bedrooms, three
for the guests, and one occupied by Jensen's family. The
whole place was kept very clean ; the only thing that I had
to find fault with was the shortness of the bedsteads, which
were only about 4 feet 6 inches long.

Modruvellir Technical College. 121

On the morning of September the ist, we left Akreyri at
9 o'clock. Just before starting, a deliberate and successful
attempt was made to swindle us by the man who had taken
charge of our horses during our stay here, and who now de-
manded double the usual amount charged. This I refused to
pay, and appealed to the Sysselman, who, however, decided that,
as I had no written agreement, I must pay the sum asked,
so, of course, there was no help for it, and it was paid. Our
route lay along the west shore of the Qord, which was covered
with a vast quantity of mussel-shells. After travelling very
slowly for an hour, we halted to put some of the packs
straight, and were on the point of making a fresh start,
when some gentlemen and ladies, on their way to Akreyri,
rode up. They turned out to be Dr. Jon Hjaltalin, the
principal of Modruvellir Technical College,* his lady, and

some friends. Though so close to Akreyri, they insisted
on turning back with us, and we were only too glad of

having this opportunity of making the Doctor's acquaint-
ance, who, from his lojig residence in Edinburgh, would
very well pass for a Scotchman. After an hour's ride, we
left the pack-train, and turning into a byepath, soon came in
sight of the college and church , standing at the base of a
high hill, in some fine meadows, and, fording the Horg^
were in a few minutes more seated in the Doctor's com-
fortable drawing-room.

After partaking of coffee and cakes, the Doctor showed us
over the establishment, but we were unfortunate as to the
time of our visit, it being the vacation, and, as some extensive

* This is a Government institution, and has only been open two
sessions. The staff consists of the Principal and two other Professors.
At the present time the number of students varies from fifty to sixty.
Science, natural history, mathematics, and modem languages are
taught, but no classics. The college has been so successful, that the
applications for admission are greatly in excess of the accommodation
provided.

122 Summer Travelling in Iceland.

alterations were going on, the building was in the hands of
the workmen. However, from what I saw of it, the arrange-
ments seemed to be very good, and the college is highly
spoken of by those whose sons have been students at it.
After having spent an hour in pleasant conversation with our
host and his wife, we again mounted our horses and pro-
ceeded on our way to SteinstaSir. As we travelled along the
right bank of the Horga, we passed a large number of small
&rm$ ; in other parts of the country they were few in number,
and at a considerable distance from one another ; here, how-
ever, they were seldom as much as a mile apart After
riding up the valley of the Horga for two hours, we turned to
the left, and entered the Oxnadalr. The scenery here became
very grand, the mountains rising on either side to the height
of two thousand feet. The grass extended more than half-
way up their sides, and the river Oxna dashed along over its
rocky bed in the centre of the narrow valley. Far up the
mountain-sides were numbers of sheep, which looked like
small white specks, and made one wonder how any four-footed
beast could ever have reached the places where we saw them,
or how they would ever get down again. Right in front of
us, rose in bold outline, their summits covered with snow, the
range of mountains which we should have to cross on the
morrow, one of which had a very striking appearance, owing
to the number of its sharp peaks. At half-past four we
arrived at SteinstaSir, where we intended to pass the night.
This farm had the appearance of being ill kept, and was not
so clean as it might have been, but the farmer received us
very kindly, and gave us a very good dinner. It will, perhaps,
be as well if I here explain, that nothing is now given, in the
sense of a gift, to any stranger in Iceland ; such, I believe, was
once the case, and some tact had to be used in the manner in
which a farmer had to be recompensed for food and lodging ;
this is now, however, a thing of the past, and a regular charge

Ride up the Oxnadalr. 1^3

is made for everything supplied to travellers ; the bill is gene-
rally very reasonable, and every effort is used to make the
strangers comfortable.

On the opposite side of the valley stands the church-larm
of Bakki, which once formed part of the cure of Sira Jon
Thorlakson, the celebrated Icelandic poet, who translated
Milton's * Paradise Lost/ and who was also the author of
several original poems. I have heard that some of his best
works have never been published, as his limited means would
not admit of his incurring the expense of printing them.

After passing a very comfortable night at SteinstaSir, we
left at eight o'clock, and rode up the Oxnadalr ; we soon had
reached a considerable elevation, fording many small rivers,
which had a bad reputation, but caused us no inconvenience.
As the weather yesterday had been very boisterous and
showery, we had feared that this part of our journey would
have been rather unpleasant, as we had many miles to travel
before night, and had to cross a mountain 2200 feet high,
but with the fickleness for which the climate of Iceland is
celebrated, the weather had changed, and the sun was
shining brightly as we rode up this truly beautiful valley;
indeed, I do not remember ever having seen a more lovely
picture of mountain scenery. Numerous waterfalls dashed
down the mountains, and hurried through the grass-covered
valley in brawling streams to join the OxnS, whose swollen
waters rushed onward in a foaming torrent towards the sea.
Farms, in the midst of their closely-mown meadows, were
to be seen in all directions, and hundreds of sheep were
grazing on the green patches dotted here and there on the
sides of the mountains, which rose, with their snow-capped
summits, to the height of more than 2000 feet on either side.

At eleven o'clock we turned to the right, and commenced
the ascent of the Oxnadalsh'eiSi, by a very well made bridle-
path ; and when at an elevation of 2200 feet, we observed that

124 Summer Travelling in Iceland.

we had reached the watershed, as we saw a stream about three
hundred feet below us running to the west, and at once
began to descend the NoiiSrardalr. A great deal of labour
has been expended on this road, and in one part, where a
landslip had taken place, it would have been impassable if a
path had not been made round its entire length. These
efforts to improve the means of communication have been
commenced within the last few years, indeed since 1874, when
Iceland was granted a new constitution, and, with it, the
command of certain sums of money, which had, previous to
that time, found its way into the Danish exchequer. It is by
the wise expenditure of this newly-acquired wealth in the con-
struction of roads and bridges, that many parts of the country
which can only be reached at some risk of life and limbs, will,
it is to be hoped, within the course of a few years, be con-
nected by good bridle-paths with Reykjavik, Akreyri, and
other places of minor importance. This work is being pushed
forward in the north, the principal undertaking being an
entirely new road between the north of the island and the
capital.

After three hours* slow riding in a westerly direction, we
turned to the north-west, and entered a valley intersected by
many small streams, in which I saw numbers of mountain trout,
but they darted away as our horses disturbed them. Leaving
the church-farm of SilfrastaSir on our right, we pushed on at
a more rapid pace, and reached Miklibaer at half-past seven,
having ridden rather more than forty miles since morning.

On approaching this place we could see, from the number
of people in holiday attire who came out to look at us, that
something unusual was going on, and were soon informed that a
wedding had just taken place, the bride being the daughter of
the resident minister, and the bridegroom the pastor of the
neighbouring district. However, in spite of the inconvenience
which our arrival at such a time must have caused these good

Miklibccr — A Wedding. 125

people, they were most hospitable and kind, apologising for
not asking us into the house, as it was filled with the wedding
guests — who would be staying all night — and at the same time
offering us the use of the church in which to sleep and get
our meals. This, however, we declined, preferring our own
tent. Although the minister, who owns this farm, could not
ask us into his hbuse, he seemed determined that we should
not want for anything, for our tent had hardly been pitched
when his bailiff arrived to inform us that our dinner would
be sent out to us in a few minutes. He was accompanied by
some of the girls who were attending the wedding feast, and
these young ladies insisted on taking away our riding boots
to have thefti greased. There was a good deal of laughing
among themselves over this matter, and I rather fancy that
they were endeavouring to persuade one fair damsel to try my
boots on. When dinner came we had another visit from the
fair sex, some of whom stayed just outside the tent to see that
we did justice to the capital meal that was set before us, and
wanted for nothing ; they were, however, soon called away to
the house, as the festivities were about to commence. I was
in hopes that we might have been asked to join them in the
course of the evening, as I should have very much liked
to have seen the dance, and listened to their songs ; but after
waiting for some time, as we received no invitation, we turned
in for the night. If we had only waited for another half-
hour we should have had our wish, for Zoega told us the next
morning that he had been sent to invite us, but seeing the
tent door laced, and hearing no one talking, he concluded
that we had gone to sleep, and would not disturb us. Just
before retiring for the night, I witnessed a most beautiful
display of the Aurora Borealis, which seemed gradually to
develop itself until it assumed the form of a curtain of light
hanging in graceful folds, and stretching across the heavens
from east to west, nearly reaching the horizon on either side ;

ia6 Summer Travelling in Iceland.

it lasted for about ten minutes, during which time constant
changes were taking place, both in its intensity and form ;
at last it died out as gradually as it had appeared. I had
frequently witnessed this phenomenon previously, but have
never before seen such a beautiful display.

Rising at an early hour the next morning, I set out for
the yard where the guests* horses were kept, to have a look at
them, as this part of Iceland is celebrated for its nags ; some
had been taken away by their owners, but there still remained
a goodly number, and among them were some stout cobs
that would have fetched a good price in England, and one
was pointed out to me that was valued even here at 500
kroner. Just as I had finished my inspection and was
passing by the house on my way back to the tent, I heard
some one playing ^^ Rule Britannia ** on a harmonium ; this
was followed by "God save the Queen,** and afterwards by
the " Blue Bells of Scotland.** It was the bridegroom who
was the performer, and he played them very well. We were
invited to breakfast, and the bride, who was a tall, pleasing-
looking lady, .waited on us, her husband presiding, while the
&ther of the bride, who was also our host, took his seat at
the side of the table among the guests. Zoega told me that
this was de rigueur^ and that any departure from it would
have been quite contrary to etiquette, and an insult to the
newly-married couple. The bride had put off her wedding
attire, and was wearing the ordinary dress. The former is
somewhat peculiar as regards the headgear, and, indeed, this
remark also applies to the ordinary cap worn by the women
of Iceland. As I am a very bad hand at giving a description
of female dress, and have but faint notions as to the proper
names of the materials used, I refrain from making the
attempt, knowing tliat I should only lead any lady, who may
do me the honour to read this book, into a hopeless state of
doubt and confusion, and I have thought it better to let the

Miklibcer — The Church. 127

two illustrations, one of which has been copied from a photo-
graph, speak for themselves, merely adding that the ordinary
dress is made of home-spun, and that the bride generally
adorns hers with curious old silver clasps and ornaments.

This farm is much superior to any that I have seen in this
country, with perhaps the exception of i^verd ; all the acces-
sories of the breakfast-table were such as one would see in a
country gentleman's house in England. The room was nicely
furnished, and contained the harmonium on which I had heard
the bridegroom performing. Being curious to know how
so bulky and heavy an aiticle as this instrument could have
been brought from Akreyri by the narrow bridle-paths, over
which it would be impossible for any wheeled vehicle to pass,
I inquired of our host, who informed me that it had been
packed up, slung in a frame between two horses, and that the
only difficulty that had been experienced in its transport was
in crossing the rivers, as it would be injured by getting wet.
I was afterwards pointed out several articles of furniture, such
as a sideboard, a sofa, and a heavy arm-chair, all of which had
been transported from Akreyri on the backs of horses. It is
also a fact, that when a person dies at any distance from a
burial-ground, the coffin containing the corpse is put on a
horse's back, and thus carried to the place of interment.

Having a very long day's journey before us, we were
anxious to have made an early start, but this we found to be
impossible, as the guests had only just taken their departure,
and the guide for the ford had gone to see them safely across
the river, so that we had to await his return, and Peek
improved the occasion by shooting some golden plover,
thousands of which were flying about close to the farm
buildings and over the hay-swamps, which extended for
a mile between the house and the river. While we were
waiting, I went into the little church to see what its interior
Was like. It was very small, about 30 feet long by 1 6 broad,

128 Summer Travelling in Iceland.

and contained some very rude benches. At the conimunion
table were hung up two boards, on which were painted, what
I presumed to be, the Ten Commandments ; but there was no
attempt at decoration, and an entire absence of the gaudy
colours which, without exception, I saw in every other church
which I had visited. Outside, it had the appearance of a large
mound of earthy with a cross set up at one end ; and a lux-
uriant crop of grass was growing all over it, except at the ends,
where the entrance door, and the window over the communion
table, were situated-
It was lo o'clock before we were able to get away from
this place, where we had been so hospitably entertained, and
where, in spite of the festive occasion, and the number of
people brought together, I had not seen one drunken man.
The H^ra*sv6tn (district waters), which we were about to ford,
is considered to be a very dangerous river, or more properly
speaking, series of rivers, for it flows in several channels, and is
approached from the Miklibaer side by a trail through a
grassy swamp of more than a mile in extent. The principal
ford zig-zags about in a most puzzling manner, the water on
each side being so deep that one of our horses, getting a Uttle
too far to the right, had to swim for it. On reaching the
other side we came upon some fine grass plains, which in part
accounts for this place being so celebrated for its breed of
horses. Travelling in a westerly direction across the plain,
we came to the Svart^, a beautifully clear river, and turning to
the north, continued down its right bank, until we arrived at
a farm, Vallholt, whose owner came out and requested us not
to pass over his land, as much of his grass would be trodden
down by our horses. We of course complied with his request,
but by so doing it entailed the necessity of making a long
detour, and the climbing of some veiy steep hills, which we
would gladly have avoided, as we should have had plenty of
hill-work without this addition to it. However, the man was.

A Pleasant Ride. 129

I believe, in his rights, and so we at once passed to the other
side of the Svart^ by an easy ford, and after crossing some
steep hills, descended into the marshy ground surrounding
the church-farm of Vf8imyri, and crossed a bog where a
narrow causeway of turf had been built across a portion of it
that would otherwise have been impassable. The usual tussle
between the pack-horses took place, and some of them got
pushed off into the red mud below, but they all managed to
get out again. This little trial of strength between the horses
had so disarranged the packs, that we had to make a short
halt to put them in order, and then we commenced the long
ascent of the VatnskarS, which, like the NorSrirdalr, is tra-
versed by a capital bridle-path, on which much labour must
have been expended.

Half-way up the mountain, there is a very pretty waterfall
close to the road, at the bottom of which I saw several trout
nets spread out on the rocks to dry. The grass grows, for
Iceland, luxuriantly here, and I saw a party of men and
women, knee deep in the water of a swamp, haymaking ; the
men were mowing, and the women raking the grass as soon
as it was cut to the dry ground. On reaching the summit, I
found that we had attained an elevation of 1500 feet above
sea level, and a very beautiful view opened out before us.
In the valley to our right was situated a small lake, on which
several wild swans were swimming about. The shores were
clad with verdure, and beyond the Grisafell, which rose
abruptly from the opposite margin of the lake, we could
see the blue waters of the SkagaQ6r?r. Directly in front of
us, lay the valley of the Blanda, and slowly winding their way
up the mountain side, came a long string of pack-horses, on
their way to the haymaking party which we had seen at work
in the swamp. There were mountains to be seen in every
direction, some seeming, in the beautifully clear atmosphere,
to be quite close to us, others with their harsh outlines toned

I JO Summer Travelling in Iceland.

down by the intervening space, until at last they seemed to
melt away in the blue distance : it was, indeed, a veritable sea
of mountains.

I had heard many stories from Zoega about a certain
"Grettir the Strong,** who, according to his account, must
have been a very wonderful fellow. He was always ready, at
a moment's notice, to fight or wrestle with any one, and
carried his fighting propensities to such a length, that,
according to Zoega, he one night had a fight with the devil,
or a ghost. My informant did not seem to be quite clear as
to which it was. At any rate, Grettir got the best of it,
though he appears to have had a tough time while the fight
lasted. He had many virtues, but on the other hand he was
a most inveterate thief, stealing sheep with the utmost impar-
tiality from the farmers. He seems, however, to have been a
general favourite, possibly because the majority had no sheep
to lose, and sometimes he got a leg of mutton gratis. Be
this as it may, certain it is, that even at the present day his
memory seems to be held in honour, and our guides were
always pleased, on all occasions, to relate some wonderful
stories about their hero. Now it so happened that our
present position gave Zoega just such an opportunity, for
we were within sight of the place where he performed some
of his most wonderfiil feats, and was killed. We had halted
for a few minutes to rest our horses, when Zoega, pointing to
a small island in the SkagafjorSr, said :

" You see that rock ? That is Drangey, where ' Grettir
the Strong * lived.**

" So Grettir lived there, did he ? ** said I.

" Yes, he lived there, and he die there too,** said Zoega,
evidently ready to tell the story.

** I suppose you know all Grettir's history ? ** I inquired.

" Oh yes,** said Zoega, " I often read that saga, and I tell
it you if you like."

The Story of " Grettir the Strong^ 131

As I did like, I said so, and as we began slowly to descend
the mountain, with 6rettir*s rocky island home still in sight,
Zoega began his story, which I here give just as he told it.
I must, however, ask my reader to remember that I make no
pretence of giving an exact translation of this celebrated saga.
In many points it may be incorrect; it is nevertheless the
version which obtains among the class of people to which our
guides belonged, as both Evandr and Ziggi would from time
to time remind Zoega of any incident which he seemed to
have forgotten, and for this reason it may, I trust, be in*
teresting.

The Story of ** Grettir the Strong^

A very long time ago, there lived at Bjarg, a farm on the
MiSfjartSara, a chief who had been to Norway, and was a great
friend of the King ; he had a son named Grettir, who was
such a fine strong man, that he thought the best thing he
could do with him would be to send him to his friend, to
be one of his soldiers, and accordingly, when a ship left for
Norway, Grettir went in her. On the way, this ship put into
several places on the coast of Norway, and Grettir left her to
find his way as best he could to the court of the King. He
spent his time, with some companions, in hunting, and one
night when he was very cold and had no fire, he saw a light
on the opposite side of the fjord to that on which he was
encamped, and as there was no other way of getting some
fire to warm himself, he swam across it, taking a vessel
with him in which to bring the fire back; but no sooner
had he come to the house where the fire was burning,
than the men to whom it belonged set upon him and tried
to kill him. Grettir, however, was too strong for them, and
though he had no arms, he beat them off with a firebrand,
but in so doing he set the house on fire, and though he
escaped, the men who had attacked him were burned to

K 2

13^^ Summer Travelling in Iceland.

death. On his return to the camp, his companions called
him a murderer, and left him, going to the King of Norway
in a ship to accuse him of this crime. Grettir took a long
time to travel over the mountains to the place where the
King held his court, but at last he arrived there, and was at
once made a prisoner. When the day of his trial came the
people attacked him, but Grettir seized a weapon from one of
them and defended himself so effectually, that many of his
assailants were severely injured. This made matters much
worse, and he would have been executed, but he managed to
make his escape, and, getting on board a ship where he was
not known, returned in her to Iceland. As ill-fortune would
have it, the account of what Grettir had done in Norway
soon followed him, and he was outlawed. Things had
changed since Grettir had left home. His father was dead,
and his elder brother Atti had been murdered by a man
named Thorbjorn, who now became his great enemy. Poor
Grettir was driven to great straits, as his foes were continually
hunting him to kill him, so he took to sheep-stealing and
lived in the mountains. But on one occasion he disguised
himself, and attended a wrestling-match, in which he threw
all his opponents one after the other, and among them his
great enemy Thorbjorn. It was during his wanderings in the
mountains that he had his fight with a fiend, which haunted
the house of a farmer, and whose herdsmen and cattle it used
to kill. Grettir lay in wait for it, and after a tremendous
tussle, broke the fiend's back and cut its head off: At last,
after being hunted from one place to another, Grettir bribed
some farm servants to let him have their boat, and taking
with him his younger brother and a servant named Glaum, he
set out for Drdngey, a rocky island in the Skagaf jorSr, which
rises perpendicular from the water to a great height, and
could only be mounted by some iron spikes driven into the
face of the rock. This island was used by the neighbouring

Tlie Story of *' Grettir the Strong'' 133

farmers as a summer pasture for their sheep, so that Grettir
had a stock of them ready to his hand ; having, therefore,
nothing to fear from want of provisions, he set to work to
build himself a house, and make himself comfortable. The
farmers soon discovered that some one was living on Drangey,
and having assembled, they set out in boats to turn the
intruder off; but this was easier to plan than perform, for on
arriving at the island, they were assured by Grettir that he
would throw any one down who attempted to scale the ladder,
and they, knowing his strength and determination, refrained
from making the attempt. So he and his two companions had
the place to themselves for a long time, having plenty to eat
and nothing to do, which suited Glaum, who was a lazy
fellow, very well indeed. There was one thing, however,
which demanded their constant attention, and that was
keeping their fire alight, and each in his turn undertook
this duty. Now it so happened that one Christmas Eve
Glaum neglected the fire, and it went out ; the weather was
very cold, and as it was absolutely necessary that they should
have a fire, Grettir, after giving Glaum a good thrashing for
his laziness, declared that he would swim to the mainland and
obtain some. His brother tried in vain to persuade him not
to undertake such a task, but go he would ; so taking a pot in
which to carry the fire if he should succeed in getting it, he
descended the ladder, and, jumping into the freezing water,
set out on his four-mile swim for the nearest land, which he
succeeded in reaching, and hastening to the nearest farm,
pushed open the door, and stalked into the house all covered
with ice. There was only a woman in the room which he
had entered, but in another, close to, there were several of
his enemies who would only have been too glad to have
killed him. The woman jumped up and moved towards
the room where the men were sleeping, but before calling
them, said :

134 Summer Travelling in Iceland.

"Who are you, that come into decent people's houses
without knocking at the door, and asking leave ? "

" I am Grettir,'* he answered ; " I am cold, I want fire.
Will you give me some ? **

The woman paused a moment ; then, remembering that it
was Christmas Eve, said, " Yes, though you are an outlaw,
and are living on our sheep, I will give you fire, and let you
depart in peace, for Christ's sake, because it is the eve of His
nativity."

So Grettir filled the pot with fire, and returned to
Dr&ngey, pushing the pot before him in the water.

Many futile attempts were made to dislodge Grettir and
his companions, but they all failed, until at last Thorbjorn
consulted an old witch, who promised to help him, and in
order that she might inspect the place, he took her out to
Dringey in a boat. This visit was so little to Grettir's liking,
that he threw a large stone at the boat, and it fell on the
witch and broke her leg, for which she cursed him most cor-
dially. As it was unsafe for her to approach the island, she
resorted to the expedient of cursmg a log of wood, which by
magic art she caused to fioat out to the landing-place at
Drdngey, and Glaum, seeing it, carried it up the ladder, and
asked Grettir to cut it up into logs for the fire. Grettir
took his axe, but at the first stroke it glided off the log,
nearly cutting his foQt off, and he had to be carried into
the house, when he told his brother that he felt he should
soon die. The witch knew at once that something had
happened to Grettir, and sent word to all his enemies to take
their boats and set out to Drdngey, as Grettir would now be
unable to resist them. This Grettir had foreseen, and had
warned Glaum to get some large stones close to the ladder
and fling them down on any one who attempted to climb
up, at the same time telling him to keep a good look-out ;
but Glaum contented himself with placing the stones ready,

The Story of " Grettir the Strong^ 1 35

— ■ — -.-... ■ . . ...

and then, it being a warm day, lay down and went to sleep.
Meantime the boats, full of men, had approached the island
unseen, and Thorbjorn, leading his men, mounted the ladder
and pounced on Glaum while he was yet asleep ; but Grettir
had heard them, and, seizing his spear, called to his brother to
defend himself, which he did most manfully, until he was
brought to the ground by a blow on the head. Grettir
could not get off his bed, but nevertheless made such re-
sistance with his long spear that some of his enemies were
killed at every attempt that was made to enter the narrow
door. Thorbjorn, seeing this, ordered his men to pull the
roof down, and as they did this, the cUbris fell on Grettir, so
that he was unable to defend himself any longer, and then
they all rushed on him at once and Thorbjorn cut his head
off. The young brother was still alive, and they did not
want to kill him, but he declared that he would never rest
until he had avenged his brother, so they took him out of
the ruins of the house, and cut his head off too. Glaum did
not go unpunished for his negligence, for, strange to say, his
enemies nearly beat him to death for not having kept a better
lopk-out.

This is the story of Grettir, as Zoega told it ; the date of
the saga he did not know, but I believe it to be some time
about the middle of the eleventh century. By the time he
had finished we had reached Gil, a farm in the Svartadalr,
where we halted to rest our horses, and get our mid-day meal
of skyr.

136 Summer Travelling in Iceland.

CHAPTER X.

Gil — Fording the Blanda — Usdess Saj^ — Sblheimar — Embarrassing
Kindness — Aurora Borealis — S'Mkoftatn^^y so called — Hnausar — An
extraordinary Disease and its Cure — Salmon Fishing — T7u House of a
Sysselman — Bound for Kalmanst^nga — The new Mail Road — Crossing
the GrimstHngnahei^Siih^Kalmanst^nga,

Gil is pleasantly situated at the foot of the VatnskartS, just
at the termination of the well-made track across the moun-
tain ; a brook runs past the house, and all the land within a
considerable distance is traversed by turf-walls, about a foot
high, for the purpose of irrigation ; in such a moist climate as
that of Iceland, I should have hardly thought that anything
of the kind would have been necessary, but, on inquiry, I was
informed that they were built for that especial purpose. I
noticed here, as elsewhere in the north, that it is the fashion to
paint the name of the farm over the door. The people were
all busy getting in the hay for the winter, and were complain-
ing of the poor crops, which they attributed to the unusual
number of late frosts, and were under the apprehension that
they would have to kill off nearly half their sheep, as they
would not have sufficient fodder to feed them during the
coming winter.

After making a rather longer halt than usual to allow
Evandr to rest his leg, which had been severely bruised by
his horse falling on it, we bade good-bye to our host, and
proceeded down the picturesque valley of the Svarta, on each
side of which the mountains rise precipitately. As usual,
wherever a patch of grass was to be seen, it was covered with

Fording tJie Blanda. 137

sheep, which moved about with the greatest ease, jump-
ing about from rock to rock on the almost perpendicular
face of the precipice. The wonderful climbing powers of
these animals was a never-ending source of amazement to
me ; certainly none but a very practised mountaineer could
have reached the places where I have seen them grazing, and
yet such a thing as a sheep falling is, I am told, very rare.
When we had gone about four miles from Gil we ascended
some hills, and, after passing round a landslip by a very narrow
path, where a false step of our horses would have precipitated
us into the river, which rushed along in a foaming torrent
fifty feet below, the valley of the Blanda opened out before
us, the white water of the river contrasting strongly with the
chocolate-coloured sandbanks among which it came tearing
along. We had to ford this river lower down, and it seemed
impossible that any horse would be able to carry its rider safely
over; our guides looked at it and shook their heads, and
Zoega went so far as to say that it had much more water in
it than he expected to find at this season, and that he was not
at all sure that we should be able to ford it, but might have to
go on to Holtas^ir, eight miles farther down, where there was
a ferry-boat. We had, however, learnt by this time that the
guides one engages at Reykjavik, or indeed elsewhere, know
little or nothing about the fords of the really bad rivers,
except perhaps the general principles of river-fording, and
always depend on obtaining the services of some man residing
in the locality to show them the way. So we began to look out
for a farm where we could get a local guide, and soon after,
coming upon a party of haymakers, despatched Ziggi to try
and get one; in a short time he returned, accompanied by
a man who said he knew the river well, but had no horse,
and when we got over that difficulty by offering him one of
ours, he said that the river was very deep at the ford now, and
was getting deeper fast. At last, however, he engaged to take

138 Summer Travelling in Iceland.

us across, and for all the use he was he might have stayed
behind. Evandr, who always came to the front when we
were in difficulties, seeing that this man was fussing about,
took the matter into his own hands, and having, according
to his usual custom in such cases, filled his ample nose with
snufF, urged his horse into the river, and the next minute was
struggling through a deep and rapid channel towards a sand-
bank in the middle of the stream ; under the excitement he
forgot all about his injured leg, and kicked his horse's sides
most lustily. We drove the pack-train after him, and then our
local guide, who should have been the first man, beckoned to
us to follow him, which I was foolish enough to do, thinking
that he perhaps knew some better ford ; the consequence was
that he led me into a deep place, and, if my horse had not
been a very strong and clever old beast, I should inevitably
have been swept away. Finding that this man was only
likely to get me into trouble, I followed an old pack-horse
which I observed to be feeling its way cautiously, and by so
doing I was taken to a capital ford and experienced no ftirther
difficulty in reaching the other side. It was now getting
dark, and as we had some distance to travel, we made a short
cut over the mountains, finding some difficulty in persuading
our tired horses to mount the steep incline. On reaching an
elevation of 1300 feet above the ford, we turned to the left, and
rode for about four miles in that direction ; but it was quite
clear to me that Zoega knew nothing of this locality, and
that he was in fact making a cast to find the trail. As we
were riding along, we heard the voices of some people shouting
to their horses ahead of us, and Evandr started off to inquire
the way, but he had scarcely gone fifty yards from where we
had halted, when I heard his horse plunging and splashing,
and to judge from the energy which he threw into his ejacu-
lations, I fear that he was not blessing the land of his birth;
the fact was that, in the dark, he had ridden into a bog, from

Sdlheimar. 139

which he with difficulty extricated himself after dismounting
from his horse. The people we had heard turned out to be a
party of men who were carrying hay down from the mountains,
and they put us in the right way for our destination. It was
now quite dark, and the spare horses gave us considerable
trouble, as they were very hungry and kept trying to steal away
to feed ; however, by rattling them along at a good pace, we
managed to keep them together. The mountain-side, down
which we were travelling, was very rough riding, especially
as we could not sec where we were going; for my part,
I let my horse have his head and pick his own way, being
content to keep him to the general direction in which
I wished him to go. At nine o'clock we saw some lights
before us, and in a few minutes more we arrived at the farm
of S61heimar.

As soon as we entered the house the mother of the farmer
came in to wish us welcome, and seeing that my trousers were
wet from the ducking I got when crossing the Blanda, insisted
on my pulling off my boots and stockings, which she took
away to dry ; then, thinking we must all be in the same plight,
would not be satisfied until she had felt my companions*
feet, and was quite concerned because I would not let her
have my trousers too. This I could not well do, as I had no
others to put on, but the good old soul did not seem to con-
sider that this was a sufficient reason, and from time to time
renewed her request, which, however, my modesty compelled
me to refuse, the more so as all the female members of the
family — and they were not a few — ^seemed to be backing
the old lady up in her hospitable demand.

Our long ride had made us very hungry, and we were in a
good condition to appreciate the fine trout that were set before
us, the before-mentioned old lady urging us on to renewed
efforts whenever she thought she discerned any sign of
flagging in our appetites. We witnessed here another beau-

140 Summer Travelling in Iceland.

tifiil display of the Aurora Borealis, which formed an arch of
light across the northern heavens. The day had been beau-
tifully fine, and the night was now clear and cold, the tem-
])erature having fallen below freezing-point, and Zoega
prophesied that it would be fine the next day, as rainy weather
seldom followed the Aurora. While we had been looking
at the Aurora, three good beds had been made for us on
the floor of the guest-chamber, and we were not long
before we turned in, and were soon fast asleep.

The next morning, September 4th, after an early break-
fast, we started out to have a look round. This farmhouse is
beautifully situated on a piece of ground which gradually
slopes down to the Svinavatn (Swine's Lake), which is about a
mile distant. As far as the eye can reach, the whole valley is
covered with vegetation, a somewhat rare sight in Iceland.
The buildings were quite new, and were great improve-
ments on the old style. The Svfna Mountain rises abruptly
from the opposite shores of the lake, at the northern ex-
tremity of which Reykjanybba attains an elevation of 2000
feet. The lake is about 8 miles long, and its breadth varies
from li to 3 miles; it contains a great number of trout, but
they do not appear to run to any great size, as among a large
sackful which had been netted, I saw none that would weigh
more than two pounds. Having some time to spare, as our
day's journey was to be a short one, we went down to the lake
and launched the small boat which the farmer uses to haul his
net with. I acted as waterman, while Peek and Morgan tried
to catch some trout with spinning minnows. The sport, how-
ever, was not good, as there was not a breath of wind, the sun
was shining brightly, and the fish were not feeding ; so, after a
short row, we returned to the farm, where we found a number
of people collected, as it was a post station and the man who
carries the mail-bag was expected. There were a number of
dogs about the place, which had come with their masters,

Svinavatn. 141

and a more wretched pack of curs I have never seen ; indeed,
this remark applies to all the dogs that we saw at the farm-
houses ; and I am told that there are but few places now where
the pure breed of Icelandic dogs is to be found. Those that
we saw were dreadful cowards, and would run away with their
tails between their legs as soon as we approached them, until
they got to a safe distance, when they would turn and bark
furiously ; they are, however, very useful to their owners for
driving horses and sheep, and often amused us by the sly
manner in which they came behind the horses and snapped
at their heels to make them keep up with the rest, and the
skilful way in which they dodged their kicks.

As there is not at the present time a single pig in Iceland,
I was curious to know how Svinavatn (Swine's Lake) came
by its name, and on asking the farmer, he told me that at one
time there had been a herd of swine on the opposite side of the
lake, which were drowned in trying to swim across it. If this
story be true, it certainly goes to show that the climate of
Iceland must have been much milder in times past than it is
at present, for every one that I spoke to on the subject was of
opinion that it would be impossible to keep pigs here now,
during the long and severe winters. The stories which we
were told at Akreyri about the number of white bears which
had landed on the island during the winter of 1880-81
received confirmation here. The farmer said that many had
been seen wandering about, but that they were quite harmless
when on land, and would run away when any one came near
them. They would, however, sometimes kill a horse, but
never interfered with the sheep. This was, possibly, because
the latter were all housed close to the homestead. At the
approach of spring they took to the water and swam away.
The arctic foxes are very numerous here, and do considerable
injury to the farmers by killing their sheep. They do not
kill them on the spot, but gnaw their noses off, and then the

142 Summer Travelling in Iceland.

poor beasts wander about until they die. This I was told as
a &ct by more than one person.

We left S61heimar at half-past two, accompanied by our
host, who came to pilot us over an extensive grassy swamp
which had several nasty quagmires in it. Our route lay along
the shore of the lake, and we saw the trout rising in great
numbers, evidently in consequence of the change of weather,
as the day had now become rather cloudy. Soon after
starting, some of our horses got into a bog, and had some
difficulty in getting out, so we were obliged to make a detour
to the right to avoid it. After crossing the Laxa, a small
river which runs out of the lake, we turned to the left, and,
ascending a hill, passed close to the farm of Reykir. A
farmer, who was leading a horse which he wanted to sell, had
accompanied us thus far on our journey from S61heimar, and
hearing that we were bound for Hnausar, told us of a short
cut, by which we saved several miles. The track was fairly
good, but swampy in some places, and brought us to an
elevated position on a spur of the Vatnsdalsfjall, from which
we enjoyed an extensive view of the Htinafl6i and the
estuaries of several wide rivers. The country had a very
desolate aspect, as viewed from our elevated position. It
appeared to be one vast swamp intersected by numerous
rivers and streams, while here and there were lakes surrounded
by low sandhills, the dark brown colour of which added to
the general gloom of the prospect.

After descending the hill, we turned to the south, and
rode up the Vatnsdalr, arriving at Hnausar at 7.30. This
farm is situated in the middle of a swamp, and we had to go
nearly a mile beyond before reaching the path that led to it
round a marshy bog. It was a small place, but the people
did their best to make us welcome, and it was here, for the
first time during our visit to Iceland, that we had fresh
salmon set before us. Salmon fishing is carried on by all

An Extraordinary Disease. 143

tlie farmers in this and the neighbouring valleys, with a
persistence that bids fair before long to bring this source of
income to an end. They net them every night, and in some
of the rivers all species of weir and trap are used. It is but
right to say that I did not witness this myself, but my
information on the subject was derived from a reliable source.
But few of the salmon captured are consumed in the country.
They are dried and shipped to Denmark, where they fetch a
good price. This wholesale destruction of these fish is a most
shortsighted policy, but the desire of the farmers seems to be,
to get as much money as they can at the present time, and
they leave the future to look after itself.

We intended only to stay at this place for the night, and
then to get on as fast as we could to . Grimsttingur to have
two days* trout fishing, but while we were at supper Zoega
came in and addressed us in the following manner :
" You can't go to Grf msttingur, gentlemen ! "
" Why not ? " we asked.

" Because the doctor say no man must go there.**
" But why not ? What has the doctor to do with us ? **
" Doctor say they got the sickness there,** said Zoega.
" Oh ! perhaps they have got the small-pox,** I suggested.
" What kind of sickness is it, Zoega ? What do people look
like when they have it ? **

^'Sometimes they have big heads, and sometimes they
have big legs,** he replied.

As none of us were able to diagnose this disease by the
description of it which Zoega*s reply furnished, we thought
that we might be able to arrive at a more satisfactory conclu-
sion if we were informed as to the usual manner in which it
was treated by the medical profession, and having this end in
view, I said —

"Zoega, do the people that have this sickness ever get
well?*'

144 Summer Travelling in Iceland.

" Oh yes ! " said Zoega, " sometimes."

"Do you know what the doctors do to them to cure
them ? "

Zoega, without the slightest hesitation, replied, "They
takes their insides out,**

" Good heavens, Zoega ! take their insides out ? A man
can't live without any inside."

" Well," said he, with great presence of mind, " they lets
all their blood out of them."

^*Why, that is as bad as taking their inside out; they
can't live after all their blood has been let out," said I.

But Zoega stood to his guns, and declared that he had
properly described the usual mode of treatment in such cases,
and appealed to the farmer to verify his statement. As I do
not speak Icelandic I am unable to say whether he received
the support he desired or not, but it was quite clear that our
guides would not go to Grfmsttingur, and as our host offered
us a day's salmon fishing on his water, we decided to remain
where we were. I must however confess that, on reflection,
I have some suspicion that the whole affair was got up by the
farmer, who did not wish our cash to go to his neighbour
farther up the valley, and that he had counted on our
unwillingness to run any risks of infection, in the case of
a disease which could only be cured by such heroic treatment
as Zoega had described ; at any rate, farther up the valley, I
never heard any more of the sickness at Grfmstdngun

There are two things which, in Iceland as elsewhere, are
necessary to ensure a good day's salmon fishing : the first is
that you must be a good fisherman, which I am not, and the
other is, that you must have the proper salmon flies, whereas
I was only provided with some which had lain in a box for
many years, and were quite useless. I will here mention some
of the most killing flies for these waters, and as my informant
was a most successful fisherman I trust the information may

Salmon Fishing. 145

be of service to any of my readers who may visit Iceland for
the salmon fishing. They are as follows : — Popham, John
Scott, Silver doctor, Childers, and Butcher. Small salmon
flies ^yill dp very well for such large trout as are to be caught
in the Laxa, but these latter require a gaudy fly, yellow, blue,
and red, and will not rise to a fly which has any green in its
composition. As I have said, this is not the result of my own
experience, but is derived from information which I received
on the spot from successful fishermen, and so I give it for what
it is worth. Peek and myself fished all day with spinning
minnows, without success, while Morgan, who had such a
trout fly as I have described, killed one salmon four and a half
pounds and three sea trout. With the same kind of fly, Mr.
W. G. Lock, who had been here a short time before us, got
five salmon, one of which was a thirty pounder, and eighty
trout in a fortnight. The charge for permission to fish for
that time was, I believe, 5/., and all fish taken had to be
handed over to the farmer. In our case no charge was made.
The average nightly catch with the nets at this place during
the present year has been twelve fish, the largest taken weigh-
ing thirty-five pounds. The place is passably comfortable,
and I have no doubt that a really good fisherman coming to
Hnausar would have first-rate sport, if he could make some
arrangement with the farmer, only to haul his nets every
alternate night.

As this was the first place where we got salmon for our
meals, so it was also the first place where we got bad skyr,
and anything more detestable I cannot imagine. There was
nothing in its appearance at all diflferent from that which I
had so often enjoyed before, and it was not until I had taken
a large spoonful into my mouth that I discovered how nasty
it was. On inquiry I was told that it was some months
old, which quite accounted for its tasting, and I may also add
smelling, hke cheese in an advanced state of decomposition.

146 Slimmer Travelling in Iceland.

All the skyr that we had given to us before was freshly made,
and was, to my thinking, very delicious, but defend me from
it after it has been kept for any length of time. It then
becomes so fearfully rancid that it is a wonder anybody can
be found to eat it.

We left Hnausar at eight o'clock in the morning of
September the 6th, having had splendid weather during our
short stay, the thermometer never falling below 40° F. Soon
after leaving we crossed the Vatnsdalsd, and passed some very
curious conical sandhills, resembling gigantic tumuli, which
had doubtless been piled up by some volcanic agency. They
were very much like those I had seen in the neighboiurhood
of Rau^ukambar, but much larger and more numerous.
Not far from these we came in sight of a very picturesque
lake, surrounded by mountains, and fringed with grass. It is
called the BreiSsvatn, and received its name from the wife of
one of the earliest settlers, who established himself on its
shores. Farther on we rode up a broad valley, where we saw
immense numbers of golden plover and curlew, which took
but little notice of us, and we might, had we felt so disposed,
have shot any number of them. There was a great quantity
of grass land here, and, judging by the size of the stacks, I
should say the hay crop was better than in any other part of
the country through which we had passed. As the day was
warm and fine we thoroughly enjoyed this part of the ride.
The landscape, as we rode along, was continually presenting
new features of beauty; numerous waterfalls dashed down the
sides of the mountains by which we were surrounded, while
the farm houses, with their groups of busy haymakers, dotted
here and there in the grassy plain on either side of a river,
which glittered in the sunshine as it bounded on towards the
sea, aided in producing a really charming prospect. Two
hours* more riding brought us to the residence of the Syssel-
man, or magistrate, of the district. lie is evidently one

The House of a Sysselman. 147

* — '

whose notions are far in advance of those of his neighbours,
and had nearly completed a very comfortable-looking, two-
storey house, with French windows and a zinc roof. Zoega
shook his head when I asked him what he thought of the
building, and gave it as his opinion that the Sysselman would
be very glad to go back to his old house in the winter as the
new one would be too cold to live in; and doubtless it
would be so if no means were provided for creating artificial
heat; but a man, who was so much in advance of his'
countrymen as to build a house of this description, would
not, I think, be likely to overlook such a necessary adjunct.
Not far from the house was a neat little grist mill, which was
turned by the water of a beautiful cascade, and the whole
place had an air of thrift and tidiness, which I regret to say
was made conspicuous by its absence from most Icelandic
homesteads. I presume that there must be some good
reason, though I never could find it out, why the farmers
prefer to buy the rye and grind it themselves, rather than
purchase rye flour, but such is, I am informed, invariably
the case ; I could well understand this being so if the grain
were raised on the farms, but it is not. Every pound of it
has to be carried from the seaports on the backs of horses,
and yet I cannot call to mind ever having seen a sack of
flour of any kind during our stay on the island, except at
Reykjavik and Akreyri. At several places during our ride up
the Vatnsdalr, I noticed small potato gardens in the sheltered
places on the mountain side, which were further protected
from the cold winds by turf walls of considerable height,
this being the first attempt at gardening I have seen in the
country districts, except the small patch which most of the
farm houses have in front of them, and which, more fre-
quently than not, had nothing growing in them. At noon we
came in sight of Grimstdngur, but as we could not stop there,
we turned to the right and began to ascend the mountain.

L 2

148 Summer Travelling in Iceland,

In passing over a rocky part of the trail, Morgan's horse
tripped and came heels over head right on the top of him ;
strange to say, however, he escaped any serious injury, but
was a good deal shaken, A little farther on we came to
a well-made road, and on attaining an elevation of 2000 feet,
we halted to change horses and get something to eat.

After giving our horses an hour's rest, and letting them
get such feed as the scanty grass afforded, we set off again to
cross the barren waste which lies between Grimstfingur and
Kalmansttinga, a distance of 65 miles, a great portion of
which is 2000 feet above the level of the sea. Soon after
starting, we passed a miserable farm, and stopped to get a
drink of milk. It was such a tumble-down sort of a place,
that I could not but pity the poor people who spend their
lives in this desolate region, at such an elevation that during
the winter the cold must be unbearable. All they possessed
seemed to be a few sheep, yet when asked what we had to pay
for the milk, the woman who had given it to us said she could
make no charge, and that we were welcome to it ; of course we
insisted on paying her, and she seemed quite surprised when I
gave her half a kroner. This poor place was the last habita-
tion that we saw on this side of the island, and as we are
now taking leave of the north, I will here add my testimony to
that of many other travellers as to the kindness and hospitalit)'
of its country people, and also to the superiority of its home-
steads, as compared with any that I have seen in the south.
The roads were being pushed forward with vigour, but there
were mistakes in the manner in which the work was being
carried out that entailed the expenditure of much unnecessary
labour; for though the bridle-paths were carried over gra-
dients which could only be surmounted by horses, and were
far too steep ever to admit of the traffic of wheeled vehicles,
yet in many places they were made as much as 10 feet wide
where 5 feet would have been ample ; and at other times they

The New Mail Road. 149

were carried over the summits of considerable hills when they
might have been made round the sides without materially in-
creasing the distance or the labour of construction, and at
some future day have been widened for wheeled traffic. It
may be said that these people were hospitable because they
were paid for being so, and that, to a certain extent, would be
true ; but of this I am sure, that any foreigner who takes the
trouble of making the experiment, will find that he will not
receive a very warm reception at many English farm houses if
he rides up to the door after all the people have retired to rest,
and requests them to get up and provide him with a supper
and his bed, even though he may be perfectly willing to pay
for such accommodation ; and yet this is what we actually did
in Iceland, and never received any but the utmost kindness,
both in the north and south. The regular charge that is
now made at the farms for board and lodging, is a vast im-
provement on the old fashion of making presents, which often
failed to give satisfaction to either the recipient or donor.

Soon after leaving the last-mentioned farm, we came upon
the new road which is being made, and is intended to be the
route by which the mails will be sent between Reykjavik and
the north. Fifteen miles of road from Grfmstdngur were
constructed at the time we passed, and we saw about twenty
men at work upon it. We made very good progress as long as
we had this road to ride along, but no sooner had we arrived
at the end of it than we had to travel at a much slower pace
over one of the roughest trails that we had yet met with ; in-
deed, properly speaking, there was no trail at all, at least none
that I could see ; the whole fece of the country was covered so
thickly with blocks of stone and lava, that our unfortunate
horses must have found infinite difficulty in picking their way
between them, and sometimes, for a mile at a stretch, the poor
beasts had to scramble, as best they could, over a succession of
loose lava slabs, the sharp edges of which bruised and wounded

150 Summer Travelling in Iceland.

their legs. Our progress was so retarded by these bad places,
that the shades of evening began to close upon us when we
were yet many miles from any place where there was even an
apology for grass, and it would be impossible to halt before
we arrived at some place where our horses could find some-
thing to eat. To add to our discomfort, we were now en-
veloped in a mountain mist, which shut out all distant objects
from our view, and chilled me to the marrow ; the horses also
were now so tired that they tried to wander, and this, in the
case of the spare horses, is, on such occasions, a great source of
trouble, for they would have to go but a little distance from
the track to be hidden by the mist and darkness, in which case
we should have run but a very poor chance of ever seeing them
again, as they would be certain to start off at a trot back to the
place where they last found grass, and it would be quite out
of the question to think of waiting until they were recovered in
such a locality as we then were, where there was not a blade
of grass to be found for miles round. At last we came to
a place where Zoega said the horses could get a little feed,
and there we decided to camp for the night. I looked very
hard to see what there was for our poor beasts to eat, but &iled
to see anything more edible than rocks and sand ; however,
they were hobbled, turned loose, and soon wandered out of
sight ; then Peek, Morgan, and myself went in search of dwarf
willow-stems with which to make a fire to cook our supper.
Our efforts were not very successful, for it was only after
nearly an hour's hunt that we got a few handfuls of withered
sticks, about the size of the stem of a tobacco-pipe ; but this
was better luck than our guides met with, for they had no
fire at all, and we, by taking the precaution to have the kettle
ready to put on the fire the instant it was kindled, succeeded
in making a good kettleful of tea, which was most comfort-
ing. The mist which hung over the place made us both wet
and cold, which is scarcely to be wondered at when the

Crossing the GrimstiingnahciSi. 151

latitude is considered, and that we were now 2300 feet above
sea-level with a cutting northerly wind blowing. Inside
our tent, however, we were comfortable enough ; it was per-
fectly weather-tight, and the large tarpaulin which we always
spread as a carpet, protected us from the damp of the ground.
The next morning, at break of day, the horses were brought
up to the camp, and by seven o'clock they had all been
packed and we were under way again. The mist still
continued to hang over us, and, to warm myself, I had fre-
quently to get down and drive my horse before me. We
had seen many small lakes when we first entered the Grim-
stiingnaheiSi, and now we began to notice the same thing
as we were coming to the other end of it ; some were mere
ponds, but others were of considerable size, and numbers of
wild fowl and swans were swimming about in them ; they were
however very wary and kept well out of shot. Our guides said
there were great quantities of fish in these lakes, and I well
believe this from the number I saw in the little streams we
crossed, in one of which Evandr caught a trout in his hand.
There would, no doubt, be capital fishing in this string of
lakes, but, owing to the absence of grass, it would not be easy
to stop to catch them, as the horses would be without food ;
this difficulty might be overcome by sending them back to
Kalmanstfinga until they were wanted.

We had pushed along as rapidly as the rough nature of
the ground would permit,, in hopes that before long we
should have descended from the elevated plateau and thus
got rid of the chilling mist ; but our hopes were in vain, for
we continued to travel at an elevation of about 2000 feet for
some time longer. Fortunately die mist rose, and thus we
were saved from getting a thorough drenching; but it had
already prevented our getting one of the finest views of the
glaciers to be obtained in Iceland. Just before we halted
for lunch, and to change horses, we left the Grfmsttingnaheibi

152 Summer Travelling in Iceland.

and entered on the ArnarvatnsheiSi. The lakes here appear
to be very shallow, as clumps of rushes grow at a consider-
able distance from the shore. Our halting-place was by the
side of a small lake, the mist had again settled down on us,
and I was so cold that I took my lunch running ; that is to
say, the cold mutton and biscuits we had brought with us
were unpacked, and then having cut a piece off and taken a
biscuit, I ran up and down while eating it, and when these
were finished, ran back as hard as I could to get a fresh
supply* As the trail was now pretty clearly marked, Morgan
and myself walked on for several miles in front of the
pack-tr^n, and so slowly did they travel after their hard
fare of the previous night, that though we had only half
an hour's start, it was nearly two hours before they came
up with us, at a place where we had been some time waiting
for them. During our walk we had seen a good many
sheep, which, as usual, had wandered as far from the
farms as possible, and as we proceeded they became much
more numerous, until we reached the NorBlingafljot, after
fording which river we saw no more. As the evening drew
near, the weather cleared up, and we had a splendid view of
glacier scenery. Right in front of us was EyriksjokuU, and
in the background an immense cluster of glaciers, 35 miles
long, named the LdngjokuU. The country we were now
passing through was one great lava-bed, and in consequence
we had some pretty rough riding. Sometimes our route took
us across the solid lava, where our horses slipped about
among the sharp spikes that were sticking up in all directions ;
then we would come to places which looked as if some giant
hand had broken the lava-beds into slabs about a foot square,
and then we had to creep along at a snail's pace, as the
horses were very careful in picking their way over them;
indeed, it was not until we had passed over some six miles of
this sort of ground, that we were able to quicken our pace,

KalmanstHnga. 153

and the horses seeming, by some instinct, to know that they
were coming to better quarters than they had on the previous
evening, rattled along at a good sharp trot until we began to
mount a spur of the Strtitr. After passing over, we came in
sight of Kalmanstfinga, in a grass valley below, at the sight
of which our horses pricked their ears and bundled down the
mountain side in a manner that was truly astonishing after
the fifty miles' journey which they had made during the day ;
and I must confess that I was as glad as the poor beasts that
our journey across the desolate and forbidding plateau had
come to an end. As we approached the farm, the ewes were
being driven in to be milked by some of the women, and from
their number I could form a pretty good notion that the
owner of the homestead was a well-to-do man, and would be
likely to have pretty comfortable quarters ; nor was I mis-
taken, for though tlie house outside had the usual appearance
of an ordinary Icelandic farm house, it was very comfortable
within, I should have enjoyed a good warm at a fire, for I
was thoroughly chilled from having been so long in the
mountain mists. But no such luxury is to be met with in this
part of the world : if you get wet and cold, you must run
about until you get warm, and this, according to my thinking,
is the one great drawback to travelling in Iceland. In other
countries the traveller looks forward to the evening round the
camp- fire ; but here the only fire he can make is one that
requires constant feeding to keep it alight, and all the fuel
that he can gather in one hour will be consumed in less than
twenty minutes : to be sure, one can always roll oneself up in
the blankets, but there are few people, in health, who would
like to go to bed every time they felt cold.

On arriving at the house we were welcomed by the farmer,
who asked us into the guest-chamber, and told us, through
Zoega, that he would have our supper prepared as soon as
possible, and we determined to supplement it with some soup

154 Summer Travelling in Iceland.

of our own making. Morgan had brought with him some
soup-tablets, which I believe he purchased at Whiteley's gi-
gantic establishment, and which I cordially recommend to
all travellers. They are very hard, and there is some difficulty
in cutting them up into pieces, but they will repay the trouble,
and, if the directions given are attended to, the result will be
some first-rate soup. As usual in such cases with us, we
entrusted the culinary department to Peek, and in half an hour
he set before us a kettle of soup which was so much appreci-
ated, that we made our supper from it, despite the other good
things which our host had provided: it was just what we
needed after our cold ride, and made us quite warm and
comfortable. Before retiring for the night, we made arrange-
ments with the farmer to accompany us to the caves of
Surtshellir next morning, and were then shown into a room in
which were three bedsteads, each with its eider-down quilt ;
there was also an American clock in the room, which was tick-
ing very loudly, but was about three hours slow when we went
to bed, and one fast when we got up in the morning ; from
which fact I arrived at the conclusion that it was intended more
for ornament than use. The bedstead I occupied was about
the usual length, i.e., 4 feet 6 inches, but I managed never-
theless to coil up in it, and slept soundly until awakened next
morning by the farmer's wife bringing in coffee and rusks.

A Disappointment. 155

CHAPTER XL

A Disappointment — Starting far Reykjavik — A Long Ride — Eyriksjdkull —
The Story of Eirikr—The Kaldidalr— Probable Fate of our Horses —
Sharks — The Halt at Karasta&r — Return to Reykjavik — Settling our
Accounts — Preparing for Homeward Voyage — The Eider-Duck — Fare-
well to Iceland — Return Home.

As we intended visiting the Surtshellir caves, we were soon up
and dressed, and after a capital breakfast of skyr, coifee, and
black bread and butter, we went outside to see about our
horses being saddled; but just as we were getting ready to
start, Zoega asked, in his usual quiet way, if we remembered
the 1 1 th was Sunday, and reminded us that, as no business
could be done on that day at Reykjavik, we should barely have
time to settle our affairs with Gier Zoega before the steamer
left, even if we were to start at once for Reykjavik ; and that
if we spent a day in visiting the caves, he could not ensure
our being able to do more than just to catch the last steamer
for England, He then went on to point out that we should
have to make two very long days' journey across the moun-
tains, in order to have one at Reykjavik to square up our
accounts, and as our horses had already travelled one thousand
miles, and were beginning to show signs of the hard work
they had done, it was quite possible some of them might not
be able to perform the remainder of the journey in the
time he had mentioned, and so might be the cause of our
being delayed on the road. These arguments were unanswer-
able; so, much to our disappointment, we were obliged to
give up our projected visit, and make immediate preparation

156 Summer Travelling in Iceland.

to start for Kngvellir, which place we intended, if possible, to
reach the same day.

It was eleven o'clock before we were able to make a start,
and the first few miles after leaving Kalmanst(inga were such
rough travelling, that it seemed unlikely we should be able
to reach Kngvellir before the next morning. Immediately
after starting we had the Geitlandsi to ford, and then we
entered on a sandy plain, which was evidently in wet
seasons the bed of the Hvft^ and the loose sand, sprinkled
with water-worn boulders, made the travelling so heavy for
the horses that we could only proceed at a slow walk. After
two miles of this, having crossed numerous streams, the
chalky appearance of which proclaimed them to be com-
posed of glacier-water, we began to mount the SktilaskeiS,
and here we came upon a very well-made track, from which
the stones and blocks of lava had been carefully removed;
for while in England we construct roads, and keep them in
repair by putting stones on them, the reverse is the case in
Iceland, where they are made by removing the stones. The
ascent at first was so steep, that we were unable to improve
the pace ; but as soon as we had reached an easier gradient,
the spare horses and pack-train were divided into two lots,
Evandr and Ziggi taking one on ahead, while Zoega and
ourselves drove the other before us. This practice of dividing
the horses is always followed when it is necessary to make a
quick journey, and the traveller in this part of the world may
feel sure when he sees the guides do this, that they intend to
travel fast. The reason is obvious, for the bridle-paths are,
generally speaking, so narrow, that when a large number of
horses are driven at any speed, they crowd together, and in
their struggles to keep on the road, the pack-boxes are
knocked together with such force, that they are either un-
hooked from the pack-saddle, or broken, in either case neces-
sitating a halt until they are put right again.

The Story of Eirikr. 1 5 7

We now set off at the rate of seven miles an hour, and
the route we were travelling took us between some mag-
nificent glaciers ; on our left we had EyrlksjokuU and
Landsjokull, and at some distance ahead, to the right of
the track, was Ok. This latter is not, I believe, called a
jcikuU, but it certainly has a claim to be so, for it was covered
with ice and snow, which glittered in the sunshine. Eyriks-
jokuU was a particularly fine sight, the face of the precipice
which was towards us having what, in the distance, appeared
to be enormous icicles hanging from its brink. This was
possibly caused by the masses of ice which filled up the rifts
in its surface. Be this as it may, the eflfect in the bright
sunshine was very beautiful.

As we rode along, I asked Zoega if he knew the story of
Eirikr, and why the jokuU was named after him ; he replied
that he did, and so, without much persuasion, he related to me
the following legend, as I trotted along beside him, the narra-
tive being every now and again interrupted by his shouts to
the horses when they slackened their pace, or fell behind
Evandr, who seemed determined to get away from us if he
could, and, after the fashion of Icelandic horsemen when
riding ^t, was working his legs about as if possessed of a
demon of unrest.

Story of Eirikr.

A very long time ago, some students in a brawl killed a
woman, and, to escape justice, ran away and hid themselves
in the caves of Surtshellir ; after a time they were joined by
others, among whom were two women, and began to steal
cattle, and sheep, in great numbers from the surrounding
farmers. As they were now seventeen in all — fifteen men and
two women — and well armed, they often showed themselves
quite openly, but the farmers feared them too much to make
any attempt to apprehend them, until at last, driven to

158 Summer Travelling in Iceland.

despair, they held a council as to what had better be done,
and on a young man volunteering to join the robbers as a
spy, for the purpose of finding out the exact place where they
lived, his offer was accepted, and he started off for Surts-
hellir. Some of the band soon saw him, and brought him
as a prisoner into their hiding-place, and were going to kill
him; but, on his declaring himself to be an outlaw, and
ready to join their band, they spared his life, but made him a
servant, and watched him very closely; thus he was pre-
vented from communicating with his friends, and, worse still,
they actually made him join them in their forays on his rela-
tions' cattle and sheep. This went on for some time, but the
spy had noticed, that when the band was returning to the
caves with their spoils, they always slept in a secluded nook
in a valley, and he determined to feign sickness just before
they were going to make a raid, so that he might be left
behind, when he hoped to escape, and bring the formers to
where they were sleeping, and so capture or kill them all.
But the chief of the band, suspecting something of the kind,
gave him such a beating that he could hardly move, and then
left him in charge of the two women, telling them to kill him
if he left the cave. For some time he was so closely watched
that escape was out of the question, but after a time, the
women, seeing that he was so badly hurt that he could
scarcely crawl, left him, and he, seizing the opportunity to
effect his liberty, dragged himself to the entrance of the cave,
and finding an old horse grazing close by, managed to get on
its back, and rode off to the nearest farm. The people, who
thought that he had long been dead, were much surprised to
see him, but, on hearing his tale, the neighbourhood was soon
aroused, and all the farmers arming themselves, set out for
the place where the spy told them they would find the
robbers sleeping. There they were, sure enough; but so
frightened of them were they, that they hesitated to attack

The Story of Eirikr. 159

them, until one of their number, more courageous than the
rest, crept quietly up and secured their arms. Then they fell
upon the robbers, and, after a stout resistance, killed them all
but Eirikr, whose foot, however, one of them cut off with his
axe. Thinking that he would now be easily caught, they
approached him with the intention of killing him, when, to
their astonishment, he began to turn " cart-wheels " at such a
rate that they were soon distanced, and had the mortification
of seeing him mount the, hitherto inaccessible, jokuU, which
is now named after him. Eirikr remained on the summit of
the jokuU for some time, but at last succeeded in reaching
the coast, and getting on board a ship which took him to
Norway, where he became a rich man. An attempt to
capture the two women who had been left in the cave, met
with such determined resistance, that several men were killed
by the stones they rolled down on the besieging party before
they were finally made prisoners. Many years after these
events had happened, there came to Iceland a ship, and
among those who went on board to trade was the man, now
grown old, who had betrayed the band to which Eirikr
belonged. No sooner had he set his foot on the ship's deck,
than he was seized by a tall man with only one leg, who
told the people that he was Eirikr. He warned the others
to leave the ship at once ; then the anchor was weighed
and the ship sailed down the ^ord, never to be seen by human
eyes again.

By the time Zoega had come to the end of his story, we
were drawing near the Kaldidalr, as the pass between the
Ok and Geit mountains is called. I can well imagine that
under certain conditions of wind and weather this pass would
well deserve the name it has got of the Cold Valley ; but as wc
rode down it the sun was shining, and we were quite warm,
though at a considerable altitude, and surrounded by immense

i6o Summer Travelling in Iceland.

glaciers. From our elevated position we commanded an
extensive view of the country ; but, with the exception of the
glaciers close to us, there was a sameness in the brown
mountains and hills which, in combination with the absence
of any sign of vegetation or life, imparted to the landscape

■

an air of desolation which was quite oppressive.

As we were now drawing near to the end of our journey
across the island, and would soon have to part with our
horses, I asked Zoega what price he thought they would fetch,
and what would be the probable fate of the ugly, yet faithful,
little beast that had carried me safely for so many miles ; and
in reply to my questions he said, that as hay was very scarce,
no one would give more than 20 kroner for each horse, and
that many of them, and in all probability my favourite among
the rest, would be killed to be converted into sharks* bait.
Until I received this piece of information, I had not been
aware that the shark fisheries of Iceland were carried on
to such an extent ; but Zoega assured me that such was the
case, and that in some places the sharks were so numerous
that a man falling out of a boat would be instantly devoured.
I, of course, knew that there were plenty of sharks on the
coasts of Iceland, but I had imagined that in these high lati-
tudes it was a harmless monster, and that it only displayed
its man-eating propensities in tropical countries ; however, I
found on inquiry that the species of shark, known here as the
bone-shark, is a most savage brute, ready to attack a man in
the water whenever a chance presents itself. After hearing the
probable doom in store for my unfortunate horse, I would
willingly have taken him to England ; but he was very old,
and would not have been of any service to me, so I had to
make up my mind to abandon him to his fate.

At 3 o'clock we came to a place called Brunnar, where
there was a little grass, and here we halted to let our horses
rest, and to get something to eat ourselves. Our stock of pro-

On the way to KarastaJSr. i6i

visions consisted of a small tin of sardines, a little jar of potted
meat, and some biscuits, which we soon consumed ; we
had also some tea, but this being the first halting-place for
travellers leaving i^fngvellir for the north, all the dwarf willow
in the neighbourhood had been already gathered, and as we
should have had to go a considerable distance before we could
have collected enough to boil the kettle, we gave up the
idea of doing so. Having yet a long distance to travel before
we should arrive at the place where we intended to sleep, we
told the guides to saddle-up, and we were soon on the road
again, pushing on as fast as we could safely drive our horses.
As we rode along I asked Zoega how he and the other guides
employed themselves during the long winter; he said that
they all were engaged as fishermen by some man who owns a
boat, and that they work on shares, only receiving their pro-
portion offish as wages.

As we advanced, the country began to show more signs
of vegetable life, and in one place we saw a band of horses ;
they were as wild as deer, and galloped off over the
blocks of lava at a great speed. In Iceland the horses are
never taken for work before they are six years old ; they are
then caught and castrated, then turned out again for a short
time, after which they are broken in and worked, first under
the saddle, and then as pack-horses, until they get too old,
when they are killed and used as bait for the sharks. Large
numbers of these horses are now shipped to Leith every year ;
indeed, if the present rate of export continues, before long
horses will be as dear in Iceland as in our own country. The
track over which we had travelled all day had been a very
good one, or we could never have made such progress,
for at 8 o'clock we had arrived at the grassy plain of Hof-
mannaflotr, which is just on the verge of the great lava-beds
surrounding Kngvalla Lake. Here we dismounted, to give
our horses a short rest, and to let them nibble a few mouth-

1 62 Summer Travelling in Iceland.

fills of grass ; we could not, however, wait long, so remounting,
we began to wind round the foot of the Armannsfell. In a
short time we had reached the lava^beds, and here I had to
trust entirely to my horse to avoid the holes and rifts, which
are nasty obstacles, even in broad daylight. The horse, I knew,
was to be trusted, and picked his way with the greatest care,
while the moon, which every now and then shed an uncertain
light upon the scene, materially assisted me in keeping clear
of the rugged blocks of lava against which my horse, in his
anxiety to avoid the dangers under foot, would have fre-
quently scraped my legs. As Peek and myself were riding
along in this way, one of the pack-horses just in front walked
right into a small rift, just wide enough to admit his body,
but not the pack-boxes on either side of him. In falling, he
broke his girths, leaving his load standing on each side, while
the horse, uninjured, walked out of the rift on the other side.
This caused a short delay, and impressed upon me the neces-
sity of being prepared to be left standing over a crevice in the
lava, and contemplating my horse in the depths below. My
horse was, however, too cautious to make such a mistake ;
but in order to be prepared for such an emergency, I rode for
the rest of our journey over the lava with my feet out of the
stirrups. At i o o'clock, the furious barking of dogs informed
us that we were drawing near to a farm house, and in ten
minutes more we were knocking at the door to arouse the
farmer, who had retired for the night. We were soon
answered from within, and then, after some bustle inside, the
door was opened, and the farmer in his drawers, with a
light in his hand, bade us welcome, and asked us in. It
was too late to expect them to cook any food, so we asked
for some milk, and with that, and some black bread and
butter, we made a hearty meal ; then spreading our blankets
on the floor, in less than a quarter of an hour we were all
fast asleep.

Return to Reykjavik. 163

The morning of September 9th broke dark and threaten-
ing. From the window of the guest-chamber I could see
the waters of the great Kngvalk Lake looking black and
gloomy, as they reflected the dark clouds overhead ; soon the
rain began to fall, and we could clearly see that our last
day's ride was going to be a wet one. On inquiry, I found
that the place we were staying at was called KarastaSr, and
belonged to the widow of the late minister of Kngvellir ; from
its position on the shores of the lake, we must have travelled
in the darkness along the west side of the Almannagjd to have
arrived where we were. The house was well furnished and
very clean. To make up for not having cooked a supper for
us on the previous night, the old lady gave us an excellent
breakfast of troiit, fresh from the lake, some very good coffee,
and as much cream as we wanted. As the rain continued to
fall, we determined to make a quick journey into Reykjavik,
leaving the pack-train to follow more leisurely, in charge of
Evandr and Ziggi ; so, putting on our waterproofs and our
sou*-westers, and driving our spare horses before us, we started
with Zoega at nine o'clock. We were soon travelling on the
road over which we had made our first day's journey ; then
it had seemed to us about as bad as any road could be ; now,
however, viewed by the light of the experience we had gained
in twice crossing the island, it appeared to be a very good
one, and we got on quickly, sometimes at a sharp trot, and at
others at a hand gallop. In the middle of the day we stopped
at Seljadalr to change horses, and then proceeded at a quick
pace towards Reykjavik, for the horses, in happy ignorance
as to their prospects of being converted into sharks'-bait within
a week, seemed to be aware that they were near the end of
their journey, and fairly raced to gain the foremost place. On
reaching the upland close to Hafrarvatn, we caught sight of
Reykjavik, and could make out two large vessels in the
harbour, which we knew must be the mail, and pony steamers.

M 2

164 Summer Travelling in Iceland.

The people at all the farms we passed were still engaged in
haymaking, but as we drew closer to the town, we saw large
parties of men and women busy loading horses with peat fuel
for the winter's use, many of whom, as we rode by, shouted
a welcome to Zoega. Passing these, we trotted into the
town, and at half- past two drew rein in front of Gier Zoega's
house; that worthy met us at the door, and at once informed
us that the " Valdemar " was going to leave for Leith at twelve
o'clock on Saturday night, so that, as events proved, we had
acted wisely in pushing on from Kalmansttinga.

Our pleasant ride had now come to an end: we had
travelled iioo miles, crossing Iceland twice, and visiting
many places of great interest.

If I am right in judging my companions' feelings by my
own, we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves. For my part, with
two such fellow-travellers as it was my good fortune to have,
it would have been impossible not to have done so, and I can
only hope, if I ever undertake another journey of the same
kind, that I may make it in the like company. Nor must I
here forget our guides, or the good people who received
us into their houses, and to whom we are (I was going to
write werey but I prefer the other word as the obligation
still remains) so much indebted. Food and lodging can
always be purchased in any civilised country, but a hearty
welcome to an utter stranger, simply because he is a stranger,
is, in these days of advanced civilisation, a rare thing to meet
with, and this was always accorded to us during our stay in
Iceland, with one notable exception, in the case of the farmer
of Lundarbrekka, and I am quite willing to attribute his
want of hospitality to innate boorishness. In our guides we
were most pleasantly deceived. I had formed an opinion,
from all I had heard, that they were a class of men whose
chief aim and object in life was to get drunk as often as
possible, and, with this idea in my bead, I had solemnly warned

Return to Reykjavik. 165

Zoega, that the spirit we carried for our cooking stove con-
tained some deadly poison, in order that it might the better
preserve any insects we caught, and the chances were about
a hundred to one, that any one who drank even a small
quantity of it would die a very painful death ; but I was not
long in discovering that I was mistaken, and a more sober,
obliging, and civil set of men than our three guides I have
never met with. During our journey I frequently gave
Zoega charge of a bag containing about five pounds in
Danish silver, and kept a strict account of all expenditure,
yet never found one halfpenny out at the settling time,
though he could not have been aware how strict an account
I kept against him. I have been assured, and I believe it,
that such a thing as theft is hardly known in Iceland ; and
with regard to drunkenness, all I can say is that, during
my visit, I only saw one drunken man. I may be told
that my experiences of Icelanders are exceptional; well,
perhaps so, but it, nevertheless^ is not the least pleasant cir-
cumstance connected with my very pleasant visit to this
country, to be able truthfully to say a few kind words of
those who were always kind and hospitable to me.

At four o'clock the pack-train came in, and as Gier Zoega
was busy shipping horses in the " Camoens," we were unable
to settle our business with him ; meanwhile we took up our
quarters at his brother's house, where, as before, we were very
comfortable. Our host informed us that he had serious
thoughts of opening a hotel next spring, and as both him-
self and his wife have lived in Scotland and Hamburg, and
are well acquainted with the ways and wants of Englishmen,
it is to be hoped, in the interests of future visitors to Iceland,
that he may carry out his intention. I took the opportunity
of advising him, in the event of his opening a hotel, to bear
in mind that a bedstead four feet six inches long, was too short
for the majority of my countrymen, and that he would do

1 66 Summer Travelling in Iceland.

well to break through Icelandic customs in this respect, and
purchase some a little longer. Having asked Gier Zoega to
have his account ready for settlement in the morning, we
went up to our lodgings, and as we had received letters and
papers from home, we spent the evening reading them. We
had not seen a newspaper since we left Leith, and we were
anxious to learn if the President of the United States had
recovered from his wounds ; then there was the Bradlaugh
difficulty, we wanted to know how that had been settled ; and
the state of Ireland — but as that is chronic disorder, we looked
for it last. It was past midnight before I went to bed, and,
on looking at the barometer, I saw that it was falling in a
manner that betokened an approaching gale, which would in
all probability detain the " Valdemar," as she was going to
take some horses, and they could not be shipped if it came
on to blow. The next morning, when we got up, we found
that it was blowing and raining, and after breakfast we went
down to Gier Zoega's house to square up our accounts;
having done this, and found him to be a straightforward man
of business, we proposed that our horses should be at once
sold by auction. This he dissuaded us from doing on account
of the state of the weather, as he assured us that but very few
people would attend, and that they would be sold for next to
nothing. He said our best course would be to leave the
horses with him, and he would attend to their sale and remit
the proceeds to England ; to this we agreed, and so the
matter was left in his hands. Gier Zoega was originally a
guide, and, having saved some money, he opened a store ;
being a shrewd and enterprising man, he very soon increased
his capital, and is at the present moment one of the wealthiest
men in Iceland. Among other things which he has done, in
advance of the general ideas of his countrymen, is draining a
bog and converting it into a meadow, from which he told me
he got four times as much hay as could be made, on a like

Preparing for homeward Voyage. 167

area, in any part of the island; he has also brought the
plough into use on his farm, and levelled the hummocks on
his grass-land, which he says has also greatly increased the
hay-crop. He is the owner of a fine schooner and several
fishing-boats, all of which are engaged in the cod and shark
fisheries. I am glad to say that his success has not spoilt
him, for he is just as civil and obliging now as he ever could
have been when he was a guide, getting his five kroner a
day. We passed a very busy day packing, but as the wind
had increased to a furious gale, the " Valdemar " had to put
oiF her departure until the Sunday night. We tried to get
a look at the collection in the Museum, but the curator was
absent from home, and we could not procure the key. I
should much like to have seen this collection, which has been
got together with great care ; among other things, I am told
it contains some curious old weapons, and, strange to say,
among the descendants of so warlike a people as the first
Norwegian settlers, I never once saw a weapon of any kind.
The silver trinkets of their ancestors are in some cases pre-
served ; but their swords, armour, or battle-axes are nowhere
to be found. I suppose that in peaceable times they literally
buried the hatchet, and, while they were ^bout it, buried it so
deeply that they have never been able to find it since ; at any
rate they have not got it.

One of the last purchases we made was some eider-down :
it was sold at thirteen shillings per pound when we were at
Reykjavik, two pounds and a half being quite suflficient to make
a good quilt. As this article takes an important place in the
exports of Iceland, it may not, I trust, be out of place to give
a short account of the habits of the eider-duck, and the manner
in which the down is collected ; believing that though there
may be many of my readers who are well acquainted with
the natural history of these birds, there are at least some who

1 68 Summer Travelling in Iceland.

have never given the subject any attention, and to these I
trust it may be interesting.

In Iceland the eider-duck is considered as much the
property of the owner of the ground, where they make their
nests, as the game on the estate of an English gentleman is
considered to be his, and is quite as strictly preserved and
protected by law, the use of firearms in the vicinity of their
breeding-places being prohibited and punished by fines, and in
some cases by the forfeiture of the gun ; so great indeed is the
value attached to having a breeding-place of these birds on a
property, that the owner has been known to remove his cattle
and dogs from the neighbourhood of any place where they have
shown a disposition to settle. The islands where these birds
are most numerous are Vi«ey, close to Reykjavik, and Flatey
on the north coast : they have, however, many other breeding-
places on the coasts and islets, where they assemble in great
numbers in the latter part of May. Sir George Mackenzie,
during his travels in Iceland, had an opportunity of seeing
the eider-ducks in the month of June, when they had
assembled in the island of Vi«ey for the great work of
incubation ; they were then quite tame, though at all other
times perfectly wild. He thus describes his visit : — " As our
boat approached the shore, we passed through multitudes of
these beautiful fowls, which scarcely gave themselves the
trouble to go out of the way. Between the landing-place
and the old Governor's house, the ground was strewed with
them ; and it required some caution to avoid treading oh
their nests. The drakes were walking about, uttering a
sound very like the cooing of doves, and were even more
familiar than the common domestic ducks. All round the
house, on the garden wall, on the roof, and even inside the
houses and in the chapel, were numbers of ducks sitting on
their nests. Such as had not been long on the nest gene-

The Eider-Duck. 169

rally left it on being approached ; but those that had one or
two eggs sat perfectly quiet, suffering us to touch them, and
sometimes making gentle use of their bills to remove our
hands. When a drake happens to be near his mate, he is
extremely ^tated when any one approaches her. He passes
and repasses between her and the object of his suspicion,
raising his head, and cooing. The nests were lined with
down, which the duck takes from her own breast, and there
is a sufficient quantity I^d round the nest for the duck to

cover up the eggs when she goes to feed, which is generally
during the time of low water. The down is removed at two
different times from the nest, and sometimes the poor duck
is compelled to provide a fourth lining ; and when her down
is exhausted, the drake supplies the deficiency. When taken
from the nest, the eider-down is mixed with feathers and
straws. To separate the'm, and make the down fit for market
is part of the employment of the women during winter."

As soon as the breeding season is over, the eider-ducks

170 Summer Travelling in Iceland.

disappear, and are not seen in any numbers until the ensuing
May, when they return to their old haunts. Sir George
Mackenzie implies that the nests are sometimes stripped of
their down as many as four times, but I was told that
attempts to take it more than twice were often followed by
the birds leaving the place, and that it was therefore seldom
done, the profit not being worth the risk. As packed for us,
two and a half pounds occupied the space of an ordinary
pillow ; but it is so elastic, that where not confined in space
and warmed before a fire, it will swell to the size of a small
feather bed. As each nest yields about half a pound of down,
the present value of which is six shillings and six pence, it is
easy to understand why the Icelander is always anxious to
induce them to take up their position on his property ; they,
however, only build their nests on the sea-coast, generally on
the small islands ; and, after making inquiry, I did not hear of
an instance of their doing so on any of the numerous lakes
in the interior.

Sunday was a wretchedly wet day ; the rain fell in torrents,
and the gale continued until the afternoon, when it began to
abate. It was quite clear that the time for travelling in
Iceland was over, and Gier Zoega said that the winter might
now set in at any time. As the wind had now fallen, and
the harbour was smooth, the work of shipping horses in the
"Valdemar** began. The process was a very simple one:
half a dozen horses were tied, head and tail together, driven
into the sea, and then towed out to the steamer, which
lay at anchor half a mile from the shore ; arrived along-
side, they were slung and hoisted in. Among these were
two horses belonging to Peek, and one to Morgan,
which they were taking home as mementoes of their visit
to Iceland.

After dinner our three guides came for our luggage, and
when all was ready, pulled us off to the steamer, nor did they

Arrival at Leith. 171

leave us until they had placed everything in our cabins, and
then we shook hands with them and said good-bye.

Evandr at parting produced his snufF-horn, and offered
me a pinch, and on my declining took an extra amount
himself. Thus we parted from three as trustworthy, sober,
and civil men, as ever I have met with in any part of the
world. As this was the " Valdemar's ** last trip, there were
a great number of persons from the shore who had come
off to bid the captain farewell ; he is, deservedly, a very
popular man. Singing was kept up until all strangers were
warned to leave at midnight; then we got under way and
steamed down the FaxaQordr, but had no sooner rounded
Skagi, than the gale, which had been blowing all the previous
day, returned with redoubled fury. The " Valdemar,*' a lively
craft at all times, tumbled about in such a manner, that it was
only with great difficulty we were able to keep in our bunks,
and the poor horses must have suffered very much. One
enterprising beast, in quest of more comfortable quarters
than the deck afforded, succeeded in getting down the ladder
into the second cabin, much to the alarm of the passengers,
and had to be dragged up on deck again with a tackle. This
weather continued until we arrived at Thorshavn, at which
place we only remained for a few hours, and then we steamed
away for Leith. It had fallen calm ; the water was as smooth
as a mill-pohd, and remained so for the rest of the passage.
At 10 o'clock on the morning of September 17th we arrived
at Leith, just in time to save the tide and get into the docks ;
the ship was soon made fast alongside the quay, and the first
to greet us on our return was Mr. Warlock, to whose kind
assistance we are indebted for the possibility of getting away
on the same evening, as without his aid we should have had
to remain to look after our heavy luggage and the horses.
All this he kindly took off our hands, and did it much better
than we could have done ourselves. As I have not had the

172 Summer Travelling in Iceland*

• — * — - - - ■ _ ■■ ■

pleasure of seeing him since, I will take this opportunity of
thanking him, in the hopes that he may read these pages
before they are consigned to the limbo of unsuccessful
attempts at authorship.

There is a man (I do not know his name, or I would give
it), who belongs to the Customs at Leith, evidently intended
by nature for an Irish M.P., for his powers of obstruction
are of that high order which would eminently fit him for
such a position. Seeing his occupation by his uniform, I
requested him to examine the luggage and let me get it on
shore ; but no, he could not attend to me then, so I waited
until I had counted thirty horses hoisted out, and then went
to him again with the same request, but he had another
excuse ready, although, to all appearance, his chief occupation
was trimming his finger nails with a penknife. A third time
I applied to this worthy man to do his duty, and as I was
somewhat peremptory in my demands, he came down to the
cabin and looked through two boxes, making me turn every-
thing out, and then walked off, saying, he must see his supe-
rior on some other business, and would return again. Now
it struck me that I must either resemble some noted smuggler,
though heaven pnly knows what there is to be smuggled from
Iceland, or else that my friend wanted some palm-oil. Under
these circumstances I thought I could not do better than
follow his example, and pay a visit to his superior, which I
did, and in less than five minutes our luggage had passed
the Customs and we were standing beside it on shore. The
next morning we reached London, and I parted from my
compagnons de voyage.

APPENDIX I.

ICELANDIC SAGAS.

It was originally my intention to have introduced the following Sagas into
the body of the book, when mentioning the districts where the principal
scenes described in them were enacted, but on reflection I have thought
it better to give them in the form of an Appendix. They were written in
the beginning of the eleventh century, by an unknown author ; and as they
have never before been translated, at length, into the English language,
may, I trust, prove interesting, showing, as they do, something of the
character and customs of the early setders in Iceland.

Care has been taken by the translator to keep as nearly as may be to
the idiom of the original Some slight departure from this has, in some
places, been unavoidable, in order to make them intelligible; while in
others the expressions have had to be somewhat modified, as language
which might have been considered refined and elegant at the date when
these Sagas were written, would hardly be considered quite proper at the
present day.

THE STORY OF THORDR HREDA (The Terror).

Th6r»r hight a man, who was the son of HorSa-Kiri, a man of great
reputation; he was chief over the counties which lay next to his. He
was Lord by tide, but superior to Earls in many things. He had a noble
wife, by whom he had three sons and one daughter. The eldest son was
called Steingrfmr, the second Klyppr, the durd EyjUlfr, and the daughter
SigriiSr. All the bairns were promising, but Klyppr was the foremost of
his brothers. They were all mighty men, wonderfully fine and strong
fellows, as their forefathers had been. Their sister SigrfiSr was the finest
of women, dressy and high-minded. She was more skilful than any of
her mates that grew up with her. When the brothers were nearly of age,
their father took illness and died, and his burial was magnificent accord-
ing to ancient custom. And when the funeral feast was over (drunk),
the wife pf ThdrSr gave birth to a fine boy; to him a name was given,
and^ according to the wife's wishes, was called ThdrSr afler his father,
as she thought he would become a great man, if he was like his kins-

1 74 Appendix.

men. And when Th6rSr grew up, he was mighty and strong, promising,
hard and furious against all whom he thought little of, but friendly towards
the people; he was munificent with his money, gentle of conversation,
and a steadfast friend; he was a great jovial man, the most nimble
at sports, could swim better than any one, and was a good poet At
the time when this happened, the sons of Gunnhildr reigned over
Norway; and when Th6rSr grew up, he wished to become one of the
men of King Gamli, the son of Gunnhildr, who of all men was the most
beloved King of Norway, with the exception of Hikon A^alsteinsfdstrL
ThdrSr was twelve years of age when he went to the Court of King Gamli,
and the King considered him a great man in everything he had to do ;
and he was with the King for three winters. He always went before the
King in every danger and peril, when the King was engaged in warfare,
wherefore he received great honour and fame, for which he was widely
known. When ThdrSr had stayed three winters with King Gamli, he said
to the. King that he wished to seek his possessions. The King replied :
'' You have given us good assistance, and you will become a great man."
The King unfastened his sword (sabre), which he was wont to carry daily,
and said to ThdrSr, " Here is a sword, which I wish to give to you, and
I think good luck will attend it, and with it shall my friendship follow."
Th6rSr thanked him for this honour and everjrthing else which he had
shown him. The King said : " This I beg of you, that you give it to no
one, and never part with it, except you have to redeem your own head ;
and it is not unlikely that you will want to do that" Then ThdrSr answers :
" I intend, my Lord, not to stay for a long time away from you, while I
have the chance to accompany you." The King replies : " That will not
be so ; for we shall never see one another, now that we part." Th6r5r
became silent at the King's words, and answered nought ; then he took
leave of the King, went home to his possessions, and his relatives were
glad to see him. Klyppr, his brother, had taken possession of all their
property, and had become a chief over all the counties over which his
father had ruled; he was also a Lord by title. But short time after
ThdrSr went away from King Gamli, King Hikon the Good and King
Gamli had a fight, and in that battle fell King Gamli, which is narrated
in the Sagas of the Kings of Norway.

King SigurBr "Slefa," the son of Gunnhildr, was a very licentious
man ; he had induced Alof, the daughter of Skeggi of Yijum, to leave her
husband the Lord Klyppr, the son of ThdrSr {the elder), ThdrSr did often
invite (egg) his brother Klyppr to seek a revenge, and one day Th6r8r
came to speak with his brother, and said: *'How is this? Are you
not going to drive off your hands the disgrace which lies on your
shoulders with regard to King SigurSr, and become such a wonder
as to have every one's reproof, and will never be looked upon as such
a man as your former kinsmen were, if you can bear such an insult
on the part of King SigurSr, without seeking revenge ? Although we

Appendix. 1 75

have to contend with great difference as regards strength, yet it is better
to die with honour, if that should be our fate, than to suffer such a disgrace
without doing anything at alL I offer myself to go with you, as well as
all my brothers, rather than endure this any longer without any revenge,
however it may fare." Then answers KJyppr : " True it is, brother, what
thou sayest, that it was fully necessary to revenge this disgrace, if an
opportunity should offer ; and I am heartily willing to take revenge upon
him for the insult** After this interview, all the brothers betake them-
selves from home with a large troop of men in the direction of the
Uplands, where they heard that King Sigur8r was at a banquet And
when they arrive at the house in which the King was present and sat at
table, the brothers arrange their men for entering, and Th6r8r said that the
man who was the last to enter should be the first to go out Klyppr was
to be the first to enter, next to him Th6r8r, then Steingrlmr, then EyjiSlfr,
and then the others according to arrangement They were all fully armed
with helms, shields, and drawn swords. And when Lord Klyppr came
before King SigurSr, he drew his sword and struck, the King on the head,
and spUt it open right down to the shoulders ; the King then fell dead on
to the table. After this the brothers retire farther out into the hall, and in
the same moment ThdrSr heard a crash behind him, and observed that
his brother Klyppr had been struck a death-blow. The man who did
this was called Hrdaldr, the son of Ogmundr, the son of Horda-Kiri ; he
was a near relative of the sons of Th6ri5r ; he was waiting at the King's
table when they entered, wherefore they did not notice him ; another man
did he kill, who was hight Ogmundr, and he was the son of Val-Sjdfr; and
when ThdrSr observes the fall of his brother, he struck at Hrdaldr and
split him asunder above the hips. Then the men sprang up all about the
hall, drew their swords, and attacked the brothers furiously, but they
defended themselves well and manly. ThdrSr made good use of the
sword which King Gamli had presented him with, and became slayer of
many before he could get out It came to pass here as it always does,
that, when one suddenly loses his chief, most of the men become dis-
orderly, when they should follow their enemies, and so it was here, and
the brothers returned to their homes. King Haraldr quickly heard this
news — ^the fall of his brother, King SigurSr — ^and intends to send men
against the brothers for the purpose of killing them. At that time the
King was north in the land, wherefore it took longer time than other-
wise would have been the case; he summoned **i*ing,** and had the
brothers outlawed from the whole of Norway, but took possession of
their property.

Now there is to be said, that the brothers came home and related
the fall of King SigurSr and their brother Klyppr. It now seemed to
the brothers that they would not be able to remain in the land on account
of the power of King Haraldr and Gunnhildr. Their kinsmen and
friends then wished to sell their estates for ready money, and added that

1 76 Appendix.

ThdrSr should go in search for Iceland, whither many noble men had
gone, who had to flee from the country before the Kings of Norway.
Then Th<5rSr answers: ''Not had I intended to flee from my property
(go in exile), but as there are many noble men, who have been content
with settling in Iceland, then it may be that something similar may be
my fate." After this ThdrSr made himself ready for a journey to Iceland,
and with him his brothers Steingrfmr and Eyjdlfr and his sister SigriiSr.
They had with them great many chattels. He had nineteen men on board
his ship. He then proceeded to sea, and this was in the early summer.
They were a month at sea, and touched the Vestman Islands ; thence they
sailed to the west coast of the land, and to the north beyond the Strands ;
they sailed into the bay, and kept themselves nearer to the north coast
They then put into one flrth and took there land about the beginning of
winter. Soon people came to them, and they asked them the name of the
firth they had come to. They were informed that they had come to Mi9-
fjorSr. They landed in the mouth of MiiSfjorSr, and at that time MiSfjorSr
was completely peopled. Skeggi, who was called MififjarSar-Skeggi, dwelt
at Reykir. He was the son of Skinna-Bjom. The reason for him being
called Skinna-Bjom was, that he was wont to sail on mercantile busi-
ness to the East, and bring thence grey skins (grey fur), beaver-skins, and
sable-fur. Skeggi was a great hero and fighter in single combats. He had
been long journeying as viking, and once he came to Denmark, and went
to Hlei^r, where the mound of King Hr<51fr ("the Crow") was, broke into
the mound and took away the sword of King Hrdlfr, ''Skofnungr," which is
the best sword ever came to Iceland. He also took the axe, which Hjalti
(" the Stout-hearted ") had owned, but he could not get Laufi from BoBvar
" bjarki," for he could in no way bend his arms. From that time Skeggi
carried the sword " Skofnungr." Mi^fjarSar-Skeggi was great chief and
wealthy. He had mighty kinsmen. All the inhabitants of Mi^QorSr had
chosen him as their chief. His father, Bjorn, had taken possession of the
whole of Mi^QorSr before him. He was a " goSarS " man (temple priest) in
Mi^QorSr, and in many other places. Eyjdlfr hight a good farmer ; he dwelt
at 6s, and was a rich man. There was another farmer, named Thorkell j he
dwelt at a farm named Sandar, on the west side of the firth, opposite 6s.
He was a mean man, but rich in money, and a friend of Skeggi of Reykir.
Thorkell had offered Skeggi to bring up one of his children, and when
Th6rSr came to Mi^fjorSr, EiiSr, the son of Skeggi, was being brought up
at Sandar. Eyjiilfr, the farmer from 6s, was the first man who came to
the chapmen and had a talk with them. Th6rSr asked how it was the
farmers were so slow in coming to the ship. Eyjdlfr said it was a custom,
that Skeggi, as a rule, came first to the ship, and took that of the goods
which he liked. Also did he receive those of the chapmen he liked for
wintering at his house. Th<5r8r said that his pride was great, " but, on
the contrary, I am told, that it is the custom of the inhabitants of the land
to visit the chapmen, who have newly arrived from sea to inquire after

Appendix. 177

news." Eyjdlfr answered : " Let us go and see Skeggi, and he will receive
well such a man as thou art" Th6rSr said : ^ On board my ship I intend
to stay, and await there what will happen." Then quoth Eyjtifr : " I shall
go and see Skeggi, and inform him of the arrival of the ship." ThdrSr
answers : " Can you not do as you like T and then they parted. Eyjtilfr
went to Reykir to meet Skeggi, and told him of the ship's arrival, also who
the master was. Skeggi said that he knew well ThcSrSr and his parents ;
said that he was a serviceable man, and never had a more noble or a better
person come to this land, and praised him highly. Eyjillfr asked Skeggi to
ride down to the ship and choose those of the chapmen whom he liked to
invite home. Skeggi answered : " It always pains me that you show me
honour in all things, but once will I show you that honour, to elect those of
the chapmen you like, for none of this crew shall I receive in my home.
But this I advise you, that you give Th<5r8r no promise, unless you mean
keeping it, for he thinks Httle of making one or another bow to the earth, if
he takes that into his head." Then they parted, and Eyjiilfr rode to the ship,
saw the master, and told ThdrSr of the interview with Skeggi. Th6r8r
said : " You fare well (behave generously), but it seems to me from this,
that Skeggi intends picking quarrel with me ; and I fancy therefore, it is
more likely that I should show him a little deference." Eyjiilfr said :
" That would be my wish, that we should visit Skeggi" Th6r5r answered :
^' I shall not go at all ; but as Skeggi will receive no chapman to sit by his
side this winter, then let him keep his pride to himself as long as he likes."
Eyjiilfr invited Th6r?r to stay wiUi him for the winter at 6s, but asked him
to get an abode for the other chapmen round the firth. ThdrSr thanked
him for his invitation, but said that he would not take up his abode
with him. ThdrSr asked if Eyjiilfr would let his farm during the
winter, and that Eyjiilfr did, but betook himself to TorfastaSir, for there he
possessed another farm •; but ThdrSr took the farm at 6s. Thereafter he
had the whole cargo brought home, and the ship drawn on shore. With
ThdrSr went home his brothers and sister and all the crew, and dwelt there
quiet during the winter. Skeggi behaved as if nothing had happened, but
he and ThorSr did not speak when they met Skeggi did not make as if
he knew about the agreement or action of ThdrSr and Eyjiilfr. ThdrSr
had many men, and was himself a very jovial one, and so were his brothers.
ThdrSr soon became beloved by the people of his district. Skeggi did not
like that much, and thought likely that he would wish to become chief over
MiSfjorSr, wherefore he envied ThdrSr, for he was hard-tempered, and
could not endure that others should be held in the same honour as himself.
ThdrSr had sports during the winter, and the brothers, as well as the men
from Beer, took part in them, but none equalled ThdrSr, neither in agility
nor in strength. ThdrSr was a great active man, as well as a fine handi-
craftsman.

During the winter ThdrSr built a boat down by the mouth of
MiSfjorSr, where he, as a rule, spent his days. His intention was, that

170 Appendix.

this boat should go in the spring to the Strands for fishing. Thus time
lasted to Yule, and towards Yule Sk^gi sent a man to Thorkell of
Sandar, and invited him and his wife to a Yule feast; he also asked,
that the boy EiiSr might accompany them ; he was then young, but still
grown pretty strong. They prepared themselves to go away fit)m Sandar
on the. day before Yule, and with them the boy £i%r. Such was the
weather that thaw had set in with rain, and the river of Mil^QorSr im-
passable. The ice on the river began to thaw higher up, but down by
the firth it was passable in a boat, and when Thorkell put forward the
boat, ThdrSr addressed him, saying, *' Man ! the river is impassable."
Thorkell answers, "Look after your work, I will see to my journey."
Thorkell put the boat into the river, and the three were now on board ;
when they had got fairly out, the ice b^pan to thaw very quickly, so
they got on slowly. They drifted down the river before the ice and
the current, which ended in the capsizing of the boat They had a
ducking, and were nearly drowned ; but there was a longer life in store
for them, and Thorkdl got them on the keel of the boat The boat
now drifted towards the sea, and opposite where ThdrSr was at work, and
his brother Steingdmr with him. Then Thorkell called to Th6rSr and
asked him for help, but answers ThdrSr : '* I will look after my work,
you attend to your journey." Steingrfmr said, ** Do well, my brother, and
save the people, for now their lives are in danger, and show thy skill"
Then Th6rSr casts off the outer clothes, throws himself into the water,
and swims out to the boat ; he had to break the ice, and push it away
from him in all directions. And when he reached the boat, he first took
the boy £i%r, put him between his shoulders, fastened him with a string,
and swam with him on shore : and asked his brother, Steingrimr, to help
the boy, that he might get warm. Thereupon he swam to the boat
again, took the wife of Thorkell, who had become much exhausted, and
brought her to land. For the third time he swims out to the boat, and
brings Thgrkell to land, who was nearly dead from the cold. Steingrfmr
asked, ** Why did you bring the boy first?" Th6r8r says: "Therefore
did I bring EiiSr first, because my mind tells me, that to me this youth will
be of much u$e, and he will save my life. But therefore did I bring Thorkell
last, thinking he would best stand the cold, and again I thought, that in
him was the least loss even if he had perished." Thereupon changes
Thorkell his clothes, and recovered his strength as well as his wife. After
this they went to Reykir, but Th6r8r invited EiiSr home with him to 6s.
Ei^r says that he will willingly accept the invitation, and stayed there for a
long time. But now there is to be related, that Thorkell came to Reykir
and spoke of his unfortunate journey. Skeggi says, that a most unfortunate
journey had he had, and moreover left my son with that man, who is the
most violent man ; he added, that his mind told him, time would come
when one would give a great deal that Ei^Sr had never come to ThdrtSr.
But when Yule had passed, Thorkell went home, and on his way called at

Appendix. 1 79

6s, and asked EiSr to go with him. EiSr answers : ^ I shall not go with
thee, and you shall not again try to destroy my life." " I would no more
have caused your death than I would my own," answered Thorkell ; went
home, and is now out of the Saga.

Ei^Sr was a constant faithful follower of Th6r8r, and so was ThdrSr
very yielding to him. ThdrSr was mostly engaged in building the boat,
and the boy £i$r with him. ThdrSr had always with him the sword
which Gamli gave him, and so it was this time. Ei^r took up the
sword and played with it ThdrSr saw this, and said : '' Do you like the
sword, my foster-son?" He answered, "Very well." Th6r8r said:
" Then I will give you the sword." Ei^r answered : " Never shall I be
able to reward you for such a valuable gift, but friendship will I give you,
my foster-father, if it be thought of little worth." Th6r8r replied : ** Accept
my thanks for this, my foster-son, and your reward will be both often
and great" Thereupon went they home, and Ei^r showed the sword to
all the inmates, and was greatly pleased with it A short time after went
EiSr to Reykir, to see his father. Skeggi received him coolly, and asked :
** Why did you think the fostering-place at Th6r8r was better than the one
I got you at Thorkell ? " Eifir replied : ** Totally is the place different in
all respects ; for ThdrSr is a great man, and one can gain some good from
him, but Thorkell is both a mean man and a fool ; he would have killed
me through his foolishness and want of foresight, but ThdrSr saved my
life, and he has also given me the most valuable gift." " Through the care
of Thorkell is it, that you hold the life ; he did not wish any more for your
death than he did for his own or his wife's ; but I will look at this costly
thing which you praise so highly, that I may see if I think it of much
worth." Ei^r showed him the sword. Skeggi drew it out, liked it very
much, and said : ^' That is evident, that this valuable thing has belonged
to some nobleman, and it is a great jewel ; and I do not believe that he
has given you such a valuable and rare thing." EiSr said : '* It seems to
me then unlikely, that you would assist me as to rewards, as you do not
believe that he has given it me." Skeggi said : *' Gladly wish I, that you
had not accepted this costly gift." EiSr answered : " As to this we have
to differ." After this EiiSr went home, and the parting of father and son
this time was anything but friendly. ThdrSr received his foster-son well,
and inquired as to the conversation which took place between father and
son. Ei^r explained everything which had passed. ThdrSr answered :
** This I expected, and very much wishes your father to show me enmity ;
and this is my opinion that some further difficulties will spring up between
me and your father and his kinsmen, and it is not easily foreseen to what
end they will come ; so that you will often, with great danger, be obliged
to go between." EiSr answered : " Pleased should I be, if I could do
some good between you."

There was a man called Asbjom; he was the son of Thorstein "the White"
and Sigri^r, the sister of Mi{$ijarSar-Skeggi. He came out to Iceland this

N 2

1 80 Appendix.

summer, and landed at 61ondu6s in Langidalr. When Skeggi ascertained
the arrival of his kinsman, he rode down to the ship, receives him well,
and invites him to go home with him, and take as many men with him as
he liked. Asbjom accepted this invitation, landed his ship, and went
home to Reykir, and two men with him. Asbjom was a very tall
man, handsome, and highly esteemed. He was so strong, that his
equal could scarcely be found. He was a cheery man, and went mosdy
to a bath for pleasure's sake. One day went he and Skeggi to bathe, as
their wont was, and lay by the side of the bath in conversation. SigriiSr
of 6s went the same day to a hot spring with her linen, and was
making herself ready to go home. She went by where they lay. Asbjom
was a very pompous man with regard to dress. They saw where the
woman went She had on a red kirde (gown) and a blue cloak. The
woman was both handsome and tall, and altogether very smart Asbjom
raised himself up on his elbow, and looked at her over his shoulder. Then
Asbjom asked who this handsome woman was : **It seems to me possible that
this woman will find my love.*' Skeggi answered : " Her name is Sigri^r,
and she is the daughter of Th6rSr, the son of HorSa-Kiri ; but this advice
I give you, that you have nothing to do with her/* Asbjom asked, " Why
should that be so?" Skeggi answered : '* Her brothers are full of fierce-
ness, and very unmly." Asbjom replied, " I had thought to be my own
adviser before every man here in this land." Skeggi said, '^ It will show
itself, whether you need no help before you part, if you should take any
more liberty with them than they like." After this they went home.

Now there is to be said, that SigrfiSr came home to 6s. Her brother
ThdrSr went to meet her. He said : " Why are you so pate, my sister ?
It seems as if Asbjom * Veisugalti,' has made you change colour, but many
things will pass between us before he gets you for his wife." So the winter
passed ; all was quiet Asbjom never mentioned Sigrf?r. There was ball-
playing on the ice in MiSfjorSr between Reykir and 6s, for the firth
was early covered with ice. At this time there were many vigorous men
in MififjorBr. Th6r8r and Asbjom, the kinsman of Skeggi, were the most
vigorous of those who took part in the sports. Skeggi did not take part in
the sports, as he was getting old, but was quite strong to use his weapon.
He therefore looked on, and enjoyed himself much. He and ThdrSr never
spoke together, and much coolness seemed to exist between them. It hap-
pened one day that ThdrSr and Asbjorn took part in the sports, and were
to play together, and once ThdrSr threw Asbjorn on the ice with a huge
thump. ** There fell * Veisugalti,' " said ThorBr, but he made no reply.
Another time, when they had to go together, Asbjorn seized ThdrSr with
such strength that he fell on his knees. " And there fell the man with the
maiden-cheek," said Asbjorn, " and you ought scarcely to take part in sports
with vigorous men." Th6r5r said : " That you will first see, * Veisugalti,'
when we try weapons, which of us has to look up when we leave off that
sport." Asbjom said he was quite ready, and seized his weapons. People

Appendix. 1 8 1

went then between them, and they were parted. Now the winter passes.
Asbjom rode to his ship in the spring, and prepared it ready for sea. Skeggi
accompanied Asbjorn to the ship with many men, because he thought there
was nothing bad that one could not expect from Th6r5r. Th6r5r stayed
at home and pretended to know nothing. Asbjorn said to Skeggi : ** The
case is this, kinsman, that I am thinking of marrying, and I should like to
be my own counsellor." Skeggi said, " Where is the woman to whom your
mind mostly looks to ?" Asbjorn answered ; " I will not conceal it ; it is
Sigrf^r, the sister of Th6r?r of 6s ; she is the woman to whom my mind
looks most forward to to get for a wife." Skeggi answered : " I do not
think it likely that we shall succeed in this, and also I am unwilling to
bring this case before Th6r5r, on account of the coolness which has reigned
between you before." Asbjorn said that the only enmity, which had been
between them, had been of little worth, and added, that he would not
lose the best match on account of that, if he could obtain it. At last
Skeggi promised to woo the woman on his behalf. " My advice is,
that you do not give up your journey abroad on account of this." Skeggi
rode home, but Asbjom went abroad that summer. Short time after
Skeggi arrived home, there was news about that a ship had arrived in
the White River in BorgarfjorSr, and when the news came, great number
of people from the northern districts, both from MiSfjortSr and other
places, went to trade with the chapmen. Skeggi also prepared himself
to ride to the ship with many men. And when EiSr heard that his
father intended going to the ship, he said to ThdrSr : '* Have you any
intention of going to the ship, foster-father?" Th6r8r said : "Why should
I want my goods any less than other farmers ? and I shall certainly go."
Ei^r said : " Then I will ride with you, and hear other people's conversa-
tion, and thus acquaint myself with the market" Th6rSr answered : " It
will do better for our journey, if you accompany me, my foster-son, for so
my mind tells me, that I shall greatly need you on this journey, if my
dreams forebode anything." EiiSr said : "What did you dream, my foster-
father ?" ThdrSr said : " I dreamt I had come to the White River in Borgar-
fjorSr, and was conversing with some foreign men, especially with regard
to some bargain, and in the same moment a quantity of wolves entered the
shop, and I had a great disgust for them ; then they turned upon me, tore
my clothes, and wished to kill me, but I drew my sword, hewed one of the
wolves across the middle, and the head of another. Thereupon they ran
at me from all sides, but I seemed to defend myself, and became very
wroth ; but it seemed as if I could not foresee how it would fare with me. In
the same moment a young bear leapt before me, and would defend me, and
I woke up. It seems to me this dream forebodes great tidings." EiiSr
said : " It is evident that this forebodes some men's evil minds towards
you. Now it is my advice^ that you ride from home at the same time as
my father, though you do not converse together." Th6riSr said : " That
will I do for the sake of your request" Th6r5r made himself ready, and

1 82 Appendix.

Ei^r with him. And when ThdrSr prepared himself, his sister SigrfSr
said : " Brother ! I wish you would buy me a cloak, a very choice one."
Thdr^r answered : " That will I do, but it strikes me it will be dear enough
before the end." Th6r5r and Ei'Sr rode to the ship at the same time as
Skeggi , for EiiSr requested ThdrSr to do so. And when they arrived at
the ship, they both threw their tent over one booth.

A man by the name of J<5n is now introduced into the Saga. He lived
at Hvassafelli in NorBrdrdalr. He was a wealthy man, unforbearing and
much disliked. GuiSnin was his wife's name. She was very gaudy in
dress, and ambitious. Her brother hight Au^Sdlfr : Gldmr hight their father.
He lived at SkarSshamrar. They intended to ride to the ship at the same
time ThdrSr and Skeggi were there. And as they were riding from home
Gu^nin said to her husband, that he ought to buy her a fine mantle, for
she was a dressy woman. This the husband promised. They tiow continue
their journey until they come to Hvftirvellir. Then was the market at the
fullest They, J6n and AuiSdlfr, went through the booths. They came
into a booth of a man whose name was Th6rir ("the Rich"), and asked for
a cloak if it could be had. He said that he had a cloak, ^^ but, farmer, you
will think it dear." J6n answered : " Let us hear what there is to pay."
The Eastman valued the cloak, but Jdn thought it too dear. Au^iilfr would
that he should buy the cloak, and offered him some of his money. Jdn
went away, and when they came out, Au^iilfr egged him on to buy the
cloak, as he had promised his sister to do so. "Why should you not
have your own will ?" said J6n, " and we will go home for the price." But
this caused some delay. It is said that Th6rSr and EiiSr went through the
booths demanding goods for purchase. They came into the booth of
Thdrir (" the Rich ") and wished to buy the cloak. Th6rir says that he knows
ThdrSr and his parents, " so I will not put any price on it for you, but wish
that you would accept it." ThdrSr thanked him, and said : " This I will
accept, and let the cloak lie here while I go and fetch its worth." " I do
wish," says Thdrir, " that you had it with you." " That is of no conse-
quence," says Th6r5r ; and he and EfSr went to fetch its worth. When
ThdrSr had gone, Jdn and AuSdlfr entered the booth, and asked the Eastman
to hand them over the cloak. He said the cloak was sold, " for you would
not give as much for it as I valued it" Jdn said that he would have
it ; and in the same moment ThdrSr and Ei^r came into the booth with
the price for it ThdrSr seized the cloak, but Auddlfr drew his sword,
and was going to smite ThdrSr. Jdn also ran against ThdrSr and was
going to deal him a blow, but ThdrSr immediately drew his sword, turned
against AuiSiUfr, and smote him in the head, and he fell there and then
dead on the floor. EiSr ran before ThdrSr, when he saw Jdn's outrage,
and warded off the blow with the shield, but took the cloak under his
hand. This saw ThdrSr, and smote at Jdn with the sword \ the blow
hit him in the middle and cut him in two above the hips. Jdn's and
AuiSiilfr's companions then attacked him, but ThdrSr retreated out of the

Appefidix. 183

booth, jumped on a pile of rafters, wherefrom he defended himself well
and bravely. The men of the district and those from BorgarfjorBr flocked
to the place and wished to revenge the death of J6n and AuSiilfr, but EiSr
went to see his father, and asked him with his men to come and help
ThdrtSr. Skeggi says : " What has ThdrSr been doing that he is not
capable to help himself?" EiSr answered: "He has killed two men."
« Who are they ? " says Skeggi. " Au«iilfr and J6n," says Ei«r. " What
was the reason ?" says Skeggi. EiSr says : ** They would rob him of a
cloak which he had bought ; and one of the two would have killed him,
had I not defended him. Do not let the coolness which has reigned
between you go so far, that you take more, notice of that than of the
fact that he is from the same district as yourself; he is also my life's
saviour and foster-father." Skeggi did not answer. Thereupon EiiSr went
away, and to the place where they attacked ThdHSr, and drew his sword.
And when Th6rSr saw Ei^r, his foster-son, he said : " Do not endanger
thy life for my sake." But when Ei^r had gone out of the tent, Skeggi
stood up and said : '* The pig is sure to squeal, if the sow be killed."
Thereupon he took the sword, Skofnungr, and went to the place where
they were still attacking Th<5rSr ; but he had defended himself so bravely,
that they had not been able to inflict a wound upon him, but he had
wounded many. When Skeggi came, he went on so furiously, that
those who had attacked ThdrSr had to retreat Thereupon Skeggi
eflected a settlement reconciliation between them ; he was to be the sole
judge in the whole afiair, and he there and then gave his verdict. Th<5rSr
was to pay two hundred of silvers for the murder of J6n, but Au^dlfr should
fall unholy because of his outrage and plot against the life of Th<5rSr.
Those who had been wounded should carry their wounds without reward,
for the sake of their plot against him and attack on him, and thus they
parted When Skeggi was ready, he rode home. At the same time
Th6rSr rode to the north and Ei^r went with him, but he and Skeggi
had no conversation during the whole of the journey. They ride on
until they come to the river MiSfjartSari. Then Skeggi said : " Here
we will alight, for I have something to say to you, ThtfrSr," and so they
did. Then said Skeggi : '' Asbjorn, my kinsman, asked me to make a
proposal on his behalf, and wished me to woo your sister, Sigri'Sr, for
him ; and I should now like to know what your answer might be in this
case." Th6rSr says : " Little friendship exists between me and Asbjorn.
Neither have you been much of a friend hitherto, and never came it into
my mind that you would seek here an alliance for your kinsman ; well
do I know that Asbjorn is a highborn man, rich and a strong fellow, but
I do not know how my brothers or herself will like this bargain."
Skeggi answers : " Therefore did I mention the case to you, rather than
to your brothers, because I know that they will follow your advice, both
as regards this and other matters." Th6r5r answers : " Most likely will
they act according to my will, but to no man shall I give her without

1 84 Appeftdix.

her sanction ; but I expect she will not go contrary to my advice." Then
says Ei"8r : " I wish you would give my father a satisfactory answer as
regards this wooing, and value highly his recommendation." Th<5rSr
says : *' So it shall be ; for Skeggi gave me a great assistance in this
journey, and I will recognise it; for I will come to terms with you,
Skeggi, as to the courting of Sigrf^r. She shall sit in troth for three
winters, and if Asbjom does not arrive within these three winters, then
this agreement is of no worth, but should he come to the country before,
then he has a right to the marriage of SigrfiSr." Skeggi consented to thi^.
Thereupon held ThdrSr out his hand, and Skeggi took it, thus concluding
the bargain. Witnesses were then taken as to this promise. Then said
Skeggi : ** Now have you fared well, ThdrSr I but lucky was it that your
sister got the cloak rather than the wife of J6n. It seems to me very
likely that the men of BorgarfjorSr will remember what kind of meeting
yours was. I will therefore lengthen your name, and call you ThdrSr
Hre^Sa (* the Terror ')." ThdrSr said ; ** I am well pleased if ihey have some
memory of my coming there, and then I have no dislike to the name, but
methinks seldom will this district be witliout a Terror." After this they
rode home. When Th6r5r came home he was well received \ he was asked
what news there was. He told everything in the clearest manner. There-
upon he asked his brothers and sister to have a talk with him, and told
them of his promise. SigrfSr answered : " It seems to me, brother, that
you have acted rather rashly as regards the promise of marriage on my
behalf, as I was not consulted before." Th6rt5r answered : " This agree-
ment shall have no further value than yourself will consent to." " This I
could expect from you, and, with your foresight, I will be content in the
matter." Th6r5r thanked her for the answer, gave her the cloak, and told
her of his quarrel with J<5n and AuSulfr. . . . After this, ThdrBr kept at
home quiet, and Ei^Sr constantly with him.

This same summer a ship arrived in Blonduds in Langidalr. By that
ship came Ormr, nephew of Skeggi and brother of Asbjom. But when
Skeggi hears of the arrival of his kinsman, he rides to the ship, and invites
Ormr home to stay the winter over, and Ormr went home with him. Ormr
was this kind of a man, that he was stronger than any other, and a most
valiant man ; he was full of fierceness, considered no one his equal, was a
great fighter in single combats, and full of injustice. It happened one day
when Ormr went to the Springs, that SigrfBr from 6s was there, and another
woman with her. He thought much of her, and inquired who she was.
He was told her name and her kin. He spoke to Skeggi and said : " The
fact of the matter is this, that I wish you to woo SigrfSr of 6s on my
behalf." Skeggi answered : " This woman I will not woo for you, but any
other woman you may wish I will propose to for you." Ormr said : " Either
must you woo Sigrf^r or no one else." Skeggi answered : " Why should I
woo on your behalf your brother's betrothed ?" Ormr said : " I don't care,
if she is my brother's betrothed, but if you do not woo her for me there will

Appendix. 1 85

be some quarrel in the district^ for then I shall beguile her, and the brothers^
will hinder that, but I shall not mind it, and so you will have to assist in
the case." Then Skeggi said : '^ Sigrf^r will not allow herself to be beguiled
by you, and you are much conceited to think you can get her so dis-
honourably, and this will be to your shame, for a heavier load has Th6rSr
overturned, when he and his brothers killed King SigurSr ''Slefa," the
son of Gunnhildr/' Ormr said : '* That will take its own course ; I shall
chance it, if you will not woo her on my behalf." Skeggi answered:
*' Rather will I undertake this task than some difficulties should be caused
by it ; and I feel sure you will be discontented whatever the answer may
be." EiSr got to know this, as he was on a visit at his fothei's at Reykir.
Skeggi and Ei^r (father and son) send a word to ThdrSr, asking him to
come to Reykir. ThdrSr went, and. his brothers with him. Skeggi greets
Th6rSr gladly. He received his greeting well, and asked, what was the
meaning of his sending for him. Skeggi says : '^ That his kinsman, Ormr,
wished to marry his sister Sigrf^r." ThdrSr says: "This is a strange
negotiation on your part, for it seems to me that your kinsman, Ormr, is
more possessed of wrath and foolishness than of luck, and it is not unlikely
that it will soon be found to be so ; or does he not know that the woman
is betrothed to his brother?" Skeggi said : " Ormr is not at home, he has
gone to the ship in Langidalr." EiiSr said : " That would I, my foster-
father, that you could come to some terms for the sake of my Other's
pleading." "So it shall be as you wish," said Th6r5r; "I will come to
terms on account of your asking and the pleading of Skeggi ; but none
should I have come to if Ormr himself had wooed the woman." " This
answer will I give you, Skeggi, as regards this case, that I shall break
nothing which I have promised Asbjom. I will that Ormr go abroad this
summer and stay for two winters, but that he may expect to get the match
if Asbjom did not return." Skeggi thought the answer very good, and
they had witnesses as to this transaction. ThdrSr and Ei'Sr rode home to
6s. Sigrf-Sr gave little heed to this. Now, time passed until Ormr came
home after having prepared his ship for sailing. Ormr asked what the
result was with regard to the wooing of the woman. Skeggi told him all
Ormr thought that Skeggi had pushed this matter very lightly. Skeggi
asked him to value the transaction as he pleased. Ormr requested him to
have no thanks for the result, and became yery angry ; he said he should
never care whether Th6r^r liked it well or not, and that she should be his
mistress. Skeggi said that he was a wonderfully unwise man to talk in
such way. Ormr had not been at home for a few nights before he went to
6s, and began conversing with Sigr(%r. She asked him not to do it, and
said Th<5rBr would not care for it, adding : "You will soon find the mistake
out if you do not stop it" Ormr said that in no way should he be unpre-
pared against ThdrBr, whatsoever they might try. She said : " You will
find that out, if you frequent your visits hither; you must also expect, that
I shall pay no attention to it as long as I hear nothing of your brother

1 86 Appendix.

Asbjorn." They broke off the conversation. ThdrSr was building a boat
down by the mouth of the river, which he intended to send to the Strands
for fish) and he was going with the boat himself. Ormr came for three
successive days to 6$, and then Th6rSr spoke to him, saying : '' I request
you, Ormr, not to frequent your visits hither to my dislike or to my sister's
disgrace.** To this Ormr gave a crossgrained answer, saying, that hitherto
he had taken his own counsel as to his joumeyings despite of any man ;
and said he rather thought that so this time too the matter would have to
stand. ThdrSr said that they would not be likely both to stand upright, if
he came there for the fourth time. Ormr left off his visits for several
nights. Now Th6rSr went on busying himself about his boat, and, when
he had done, one morning, as the weather was fine, he proposed to have
sail out of the river. At Os, one of the handmaids, going into the house,
said that now the weather was good for the washing of linen. Now Sigrf^r
was wont to wash her linen in the rivulet that passed the enclosure of 6s,
and now took her linen there in company with the handmaid This
morning Ormr had an inkling of ThdrSr s intention to sail away, and bade
his horse be fetched without Skeggi*s knowledge ; whereupon he took his
weapons and rode to 6s, and went to the very dean where Sigri'Sr was.
He got off his horse and tied it up, laid aside his weapons, and went to
Sigrf-Sr, setting her down beside him, laying his head in her lap, and
putting her hands round his head. She asked how he could take into his
head to do such a thing as this ? " For this is altogether against my will ;
or mindest thou not the last words of threats of my brother's, which lie will
be only too sure to keep, so you had better see to your affairs.*' He
answers : " I am not going to be frightened at your wraiths." Now, when
Ormr came into the dean, the handmaiden started off down to the ferry,
and told ThdrSr that Ormr had come to Sigrf^r in the dean. Th6r5r
bestirred himself quickly, and took his sword and his shield, and ran up to
the dean, where Ormr still lay in the lap of Sigri'Sr. ThdrSr sprang at
Ormr, and said : '' Stand up, thou, and defend thyself; that is a manlier
deed than to crouch up to women, and to sneak behind me." Ormr started
up and stretched for his sword, and in the same moment Th6rSr hewed at
Ormr, and through his right arm. Then Ormr drew his sword, and, as he
started about, his right leg broke, whereupon Th6rSr hewed the head of
Ormr, and went home to Os, and there declared the manslaughter to have
been done by his hand. Sigrf^r bade her brother Th6r5r save himself.
He smiled at her word and said : '^ I shall go nowhere away, for I know
no roads whereby to go j I shall send a messenger to Reykir, to tell Skeggi
of the manslaughter of Ormr." She answers : '* What a strange man thou
art, brother, for surely Skeggi will speedily come here with many men to
revenge his brother, and, stalwarth as thou art, thou hast no might to with-
stand h'un in such a strife." Th6rSr said that he did not care for that
Thereupon he found his shepherd, and bade him go to Reykir and tell
Skeggi of the manslaughter. He said he was unwilling to do so, but that

Appendix. 187

he would go if he wished it '* Tell Skeggi also that he must have his fool
removed," The youth went as he was ordered, and told Skeggi of the
manslaughter of Ormr, his kinsman. Skeggi became veiy angry. The
youth said : " Th6r5r asked me to tell you that you must have your fool
removed." Now Skeggi gathers men together, and rides to 6s. But
ThdrSr was at home with nine men, and when he sees Skeggi advancing,
he prepares himself for defence. His two brothers were there, and all the
men were well armed. ThdrSr says that in no way will he give way to
Skeggi, adding, that now it would be well they tried their strength. It is
to be said that this morning £i%r had gone to his stud-horses in Lfnak-
radalr ; these ThdrSr had given him. And when he heard of the murder of
Ormr, he hurried home to 6s in order to be there before his father ; and
so he was. But when he came home he saw their preparations, took his
weapons, and joined the party of Th<5r5r, his foster-father. Th<Sr8r said :
■' I did not wish that you were at this meeting, for I shall no more spare
your father than any one else if he should make an attack.'' EilSr said :
" By you shall I stand, my foster-father, whatever may happen, for the
same fate shall be shared by us ; thus I thought, when you saved my life,
that I should unite yours with mine." Th6r5r said : " Then you will assist
me best when I need it mostly." When they had conversed together, then
Skeggi came with many men. Skeggi was most wroth ; and when he saw
his son EilSr one of Th6r5r's party, he stopped his men. Th6r8r accosted
Skeggi, and bade him attack, saying : '^ For now I am quite ready to hew
the ox, though it be fat, as it is getting rather old." Then said Skeggi :
'' I shall not attack, for I will not fight against Ei'Sr, but you will be the
cause of many crimes." Th6r8r said : " I think it is more because of
fright than mercy, if you do not attack." Skeggi answered nought, and rode
away home. Ormr was buried in a how in Mi^fjarSames.

Now we have to name more men in the Saga. Thorvaldr hight a
man; he was a good farmer, and lived in Langidalr at a farm called
Engihlf^: he was a good leech, had two sons, one named Einarr, the
other Bjami. Indri^i hight a man, a comrade of Ormr ; he was a great
man, a better fighter than any other person, but a most noble fellow. He
had come to Iceland and landed in Kolbeins^ds. When this happened
he was ready for sailing. Ossurr hight a man, who dwelt in SkagafjorSr,
at a farm called Grund ; his father was Amgrfmr and his mother J6runn,
who was sister to MiiSfjarSar-Skeggi Ossurr was a great chief, for he had
a '^ go^orS " at the upper part of SkagafjorSr, which reached towards the
one of the sons of Hjalti. Ossurr was overbearing, disliked, bigger and
stronger than most men, faithless and guilefiiL ThormdSr hight a man,
who lived at Miklibser in 6slandshli% ; his wife was 6lof, a fine
woman and a most noble character. Thdrhallr was immensely rich ; a
champion he was never called, but rather a coward, and altogether a most
mean man ; he was boasting, and the greatest bragger, and thought he knew
the best advice for everything. His wife 6l6f was the daughter of HroUeifr,

1 88 Appendix.

who was the one who took possession of HroUeifsdak, situate above
SldttahliS. She was superior to them in every respect, and had been
given to him in marriage for his wealth's sake. She was young, but
Thorhallr getting old. 6lof was also a good leech. Kdlfr hight a man
in Hjaltadalr, who dwelt at KilfastaiSir ; he was a good man of great
consideration.

Now we take up the story again at 6s, after Skeggi had had his
kinsman, Ormr, buried. He sends a man north to Indri^i, the fellow
of Ormr^ to tell him about the manslaughter, and asks him to prepare
himself for a journey from the north, if he intends trying to revenge his
comrade, for he had sworn brotherhood with Ormr ere they went to
Iceland Indri'Si made himself ready at once, and took his weapons.
He had a helm and a red shield, a great barbed spear, and girt with a
sharp sword. With him went two Eastmen and two Icelanders. Indri^i
rode from the ship as soon as he was ready. Now we begin the story
again when Th<5rSr and Skeggi parted at 6s. Ei^r said then to ThdrSr :
" I do wish, my foster-father, that you would ride out of the district at
present, but I will look after your farm while you are away." ThdrBr
said : '^ You shall have your way, but I do not care much for leaving my
dwelling-place." " So it must be at present," said Ei?r, " for ill do I
know my father's contest, if he allow you to dwell so close to him for
some time to come." Then ThdrtSr prepared himself from home; he
took his weapons with him, shield, helm, sword, and spear. His brothers
made themselves ready for the journey with him. '' This I will not," said
Th6rSr, '' for I wish not to lead you into any difficulties with me, as you
have had no share in the murders with me; stay, therefore, here with
my foster-son, until you hear some further news." Then he mounted his
horse, and bade all his people a farewell. Thereupon he rode up the
mountain-ridge towards Lfnakradalr with one man as guide. He did
not halt until he came to the farm Engihlf^, in Langidalr, late in the
evening ; he had a mask over the helm, and thus disguised himself. The
sons of Thorvaldr thought they knew him, and told their father. " And
if it be he, it means some news^ that he goes disguised through the
district" The farmer asked the great man his name, who said it
was ThdrtSr. "And art thou Th6r5r Terror?" He says: "So you
may call me, if you like ; I am the man." The farmer said : " What
is the meaning of your journey ? " ThdrSr told him of the manslaughter
of Ormr, and all the circumstances connected therewith. Thorvaldr
said: "Great tidings do you bring: the manslaughter of Ormr, the
kinsman of Skeggi, and many will the kinsmen be, who will make a
common cause with Skeggi for a redress; but whither art thou riding
now ? " Th6rSr said : " First I intend going north to a ship, which is at
the mouth of the river Kolbeinsd, whatever may then take place."
Thorvaldr offered him his son Einarr as guide, as the way was unknown
to Th6r5r. Einarr was to guide him north over VatnsskarS to a place,

Appendix. \ 89

where the roads divided. Th6r8r thanked him, drew a gold ring off his
hand and gave to Thorvaldr. The good man thanked him for the gift,
and asked him to call on him, if he would. '' My mind tells me that
during this journey you will be tried as to your skill in arms and your
valour ; you may expect that Ossurr, the kinsman of Ormr, will waylay
you, when he gets to know, for he is a great chief and an overbearing
man." Th<5rBr said : " What the fate had destined would have to come
to pass ; but unless the tokens of my family fetches are greatly at fault,
I am minded to think that some of Ormr's kinsmen may have to lose their
life at my hand, or ever my nose has done breathing ; well do you act, my
good man, and have my thanks, but I will accept your friendship, should I
ever be in need." Then Th6r5r rode away and Einarr with him ; Th6r5r
and Thorvaldr parted in good friendship ; and now they went up Langi-
dalr and north towards VatnsskarS ; when they came out of the pass they
disagreed as to the road. Th6rSr would ride over Grindarhdlar, and he
had his own will ; they ride to Amarstapi, and baited there. Th6rSr said
he was sleepy, and that some fetches of enemies were pursuing him.

Now we come to the story when Indri^i heard of the murder of his
comrade, Ormr. He rode from the ship and four men with him, two were
Norse-men ; was the one hight SigurSr, the other Thorgrimr, but both
most brave fellows. The other two were Icelanders ; the one hight BdrSr,
the other Thorfinnr. They were both great and strong, and were all well
armed. They took the usual road from SkagafjorSr up to the VatnsskarS
this same day that Th6rSr rode through the pass. Th<$rSr and his guide
now saw where five men rode with weapons. Th6rSr asked his guide if
he knew any of them. He said : *' Much am I mistaken if that is not
IndriSi master, the foster-brother of Ormr, with the red shield and a
great barbed spear in his hand." ThdrSr answers : " May be that IndriISi
wants to meet me, but what help can I expect from you ? " He said : " I
am not a fighting man, and I cannot stand to see human blood, but it is
very bad should you lose your life through them." Th6rSr said, that it
was uncertain who that night would be the commander over Indri'Si's ship.
Thereupon ThdrSr prepared himself for defence, but said it was a great
drawback that his guide was so fainthearted. Now when they met, Indri-Si
inquired what delayed Ormr. ThdrSr spake, and said that Ormr had
bought for himself property in MiSfjorSmes. Then he told him the man-
slaughter — " And avenge him now, for thou wilt not have a better chance
of me again than thou hast now." Said IndriSi : " Let it be so then." Where-
upon they all set on ThdrSr. SigurSr the Eastman aimed a thrust at him
with a spear, which, striking the shield, glanced off it down into the
ground. He stooped after die thrust, and Th6rSr, seeing that, dealt him
a blow, which striking SigurSr amidmost cut him in twain above the hips.
At this nick of time Thorfinnr dealt a blow at ThdrSr and struck the
shield and chopped a large slice thereofl ThdrSr hewed at the leg of
Thorfinnr above the knee, and forthwith cut it off. Then he challenged

190 Appendix.

Indri^i to make a brisker onset of it, '' if thou hast a will to avenge thy
comrade." Indri^i made a leap at Th6rSr and made an eager onslaught
on him, and long they fought, and the end of it was, that IndrilSi fell
before Th6rBr, all slit up with yawning wounds. Then leapt Th6r8r upon
the companions of Indri^i, and after an assault at arms, brief and swift,
Th6rSr finished by slaughtering both. After this he sat him down, and
bound up his wounds, for many a one he had got and great He then went
up to IndriVi, and asked if he stood to healing. He answered : '' Belike, if
leeches be fetched." Then ThdrSr took hold of IndriSi, pulled him out of
his blood and put him on his nag. Whereupon he moimted his own horse
and rode west into B<51sta%ahlfS and there gave out what had befallen, and
rode on with Indri^i unto EngihlfS. Thorvaldr gave a good welcome to
Th<5rSr, and offered him every cheer that he would accept, and asked him
for tidings. He told him of the fight at Amarstapi and the death of five
men. " But therefore have I here come, that I wish that you would heal
Indri^Si, for never was there a braver man." Thorvaldr said that was no
more than his duty. He received IndriSi, made him a tub-bath, and
cleansed his wounds, none of which, however, were deadly. Thorvaldr
offered to cure ThdrSr, but he would not, and said : '* I am going to the
north, whatever may befall me." IndriSi said : " Now have I, as you
know, tried to avenge Ormr's manslaughter upon ThdrSr, but thus it turned
out that four of my companions fell before him, and I myself deadly
wounded, and the result of my fight with ThdrSr ended as might be
expected, for he is not like any one as regards skill in arms. But now
it is my counsel, ThdrSr, that you ride north to my ship and wait
me there. 6lof is the name of the mistress at Miklibser ; she is a great
lady and one of the best of leeches ; ask her to receive you, until I come
to the north, and she will heal your wounds. Ossurr hight a good man,
who lives at I^verd in SkagafjorSr ; he is a kinsman of Ormr, whom you
slew, and will be sure to waylay you." ThdrSr bade him have his thanks
for his good advice. " But I shall go my way in spite of Ossurr, as I have
determined." After this ThdrSr rode northward through the pass to
SkagafjorSr and straight to the ship. He came to Miklibaer in the evening,
found the good man, who asked him his name. Th<5rSr gave it him. Th6]>
haUr said : '' Often have I heard you mentioned, but what is the reason for
coming here ? " Th6r8r told him of the meeting with IndriSi, and of the
manslaughters.

Thorhallr said that he was a great hero : " But so it seems to me as if
you are severely wounded." Th<Sr8r said the wounds were of very little
consequence, but that he only had some few scratches. At this moment
the good wife came out and said: ''Who is this great man just come?"
ThdrSr gave his name. She said she had often heard him talked of, bade
him dismount, and dwell there for the night. Th6r5r thanked the good
woman. Th6rhallr said : " Dangerous seems it to me to receive this man,
who has been implicated in so many slaughters, is himself greatly wounded.

Appendix. 1 9 1

and needs cure ; there are also great men who will pursue him and avenge
Ormr ; and I think that he who renders him any help neither will take
care of his goods nor life." Then says the mistress : '* In this matter
we do not think one way ; I think that one who helps him will get the
best of it ; I therefore invite you, ThdrBr, to stay here as long as you like ;
I will bind up your wounds and heal you, if it be possible." ThdrSr
thanked her, and said he would accept the o£fer, if her goodman would
consent thereto. Thdrhallr said, once more, " As you are wont, you will have
your own way ; I will promise Th6rSr to be faithful to him in all things, but
I must hold my tongue as to his dwelling here.'' Then Th6rSr dismounted,
and the good wife took him to an outhouse, while the good man unsaddled
his horse. The good woman laid out a table before Th6rSr, and he com-
menced his meaL After that she made him a tub-bath, and cleansed his
wounds, which were both many and great Th6rSr dwelt at Miklibaer in
concealment until he was healed from all his wounds. Then ThdrSr spoke
to the good man Thtfrhallr and his mistress : " It has now come to this,
that I am healed from all my wounds, and I will no longer keep disguised,
or be here longer than you wish.** The mistress said : " It is my will that
you be here until this case in one way or another is settled." Th6rhallr
said : '* This I will, that Th6rSr be here this winter; still I have been told
that Ossurr at I^verd intends having his revenge upon you." ThdrBr said :
'^ I do not mind that, but uncertain it is which of us two would be the one
to lay the stone over the other's head." One day rode Th6r5r to the
ship, which lay out by Elfnarhdlmr, and at the same time IndriSi came
there. The sailors had made the ship ready whilst IndriSi was at
Engihlf'S. Indri^i mvited ThdrSr to go with him abroad, but said he
could not take him to Norway because of Ormr's kinsmen, who were both
mighty and rich ; '* but I have come to terms on your behalf as to all the
manslaughters done at our meeting, for I have paid weregild out of my
money.'' ThdrSr thanked him for all this, and drew a gold ring off his
hand and gave him ; but he did not think he would go abroad for the
present After this they parted friendly. Indri%i went abroad, and is now
out of the Saga. ThdrBr rode to Miklibaer. Thdrhallr received him very
well, and said : '' Glad am I you did not go abroad ; you have dwelt here
now for some time, and I like you well ; I know also that my wife wishes
that you dwell here as long as you like ; I am without children, and it is
well to make such men one's friends, and help them with money, even if
there should be a flaw in their affairs. I am neither in want of courage,
nor of intellect to give good counsel if Ossurr should commence hostility
against you." Th6r5r was pleased with this ; but then said the wife : ** I
do not wish, Th6rSr, that you should put much faith in Thdrhallr's wisdom
or help, but I think it would be well that you would try for once his
courage should you need it" ThdrSr dwells with Th6rhallr during the
winter.

Ketill hight a fanner, who lived within 6sland ; he had given ThdrSr

1^2 Appendix.

a good horse called SviSgrfmr, after which SviSgrfmshdlar have taken
their name. The farmer Kilfr, at Kilfsta-Sir, invited ThdrBr and Th6r-
halbr to a Yule feast, and ThdriSr accepted the invitation, but before they
rode from home, the housewife said to Th<5r8r: "I wish you to be
cautious, for Ossurr at l^verd is waylaying you ; he has made a vow to
avenge his Iringnnan Ormr." Then said Th<5rhallr : '^ Rely you may upon
this, my goodwife, that we are not lost, neither for good plans nor valour,
even if we have to try, although there is some difference in strength, and
not a very small one either." The housewife said : '' May your self-praise
never thrive; and 1 advise you, ThdrSr, that you do not trust to the
valour of Thdrhallr." ThdrSr says : " He will prove himself good."
Thereupon they rode to Kilfsta^ir and were received well; the Yule
feast was a good one. Now it is to be said about Ossurr of l^verd,
that he keeps spies for the purpose of finding out about ThdrSr's journey,
when he be likely to leave after the Yule feast He gathers together men,
and on the night before the last day. in Yule he rides to Hjaltadalr, and
eighteen men with him ; he halted near the farm of VrSvfk in a small dale
called GarSshvammr. Early in the morning after Yule, ThdrSr bade his
men prepare themselves for returning home, and said, that many things
had passed before him during the night Goodman Kdlfr asked, what he
had dreamt '^ I dreamt," he says, '' that we comrades were riding up
Hjaltadalr; and when we came nigh ViSvfk, there sprang up before us
eighteen wolves ; one of them was the biggest and ran at me with open
mouth, and attacked me and my men; methought they bit my men to
death, but I thought that I killed many of the wolves, and the biggest
one I thought I wounded, and then I woke." Farmer Kilfr thought
this signified hostilities, and said : ^* This means evil-minded men," and
bade him stay the day over, and let spies go down to ViSvfk. ThdrSr
would not "Then I will," said Kilfr, "give you some more men to
increase your company." ThdrSr said : " Never shall it get abroad that
ThdrSr 'Terror' is frightened at mere dreams and increases his company
because that he, for this reason, dare not go through the county." They
now rode from KdlfstaSir, seven altogether, ThdrSr and Thdrhallr and five
men-servants. The farmer K^lfr gave ThdrSr one of his house-carls for
accompanying him; his name was Hallr, and a strong man he was.
Eyvindr hight a man, who lived at As in Hjaltadalr; he had been at
KdlfstaSir during Yule ; he had given ThdrSr a spear inlaid with gold, and
promised him his assistance whenever he was in want of men. Eyvindr
went with ThdrSr ; they went down the dale, and not very far, before a
man met them ; this man had been sent by Kdlfr to spy, and he informed
them, that no fewer than eighteen men were waylaying them down in
GarSshvammr. Thdrhallr asked who they were. He said that Ossurr of
i*ver4 was the leader. ThdrSr said, that here was an opportunity to
try men's alacrity and skill in arms. Thdrhallr said : '' It is not wise to
go and meet them with so many odds against us, but I will give you

Appendix. 1 93

my counsel.** " And what may that be ? *' says Th<Sr«r. Thdrhallr says :
'* Let us turn here over to the tongue, thence into Kolbeinsdalr and then
home, that they may not become aware of us." Th6rBr says : " Small odds
against us it seems to me, if they are eighteen and we nine ; I know, that
often have men fared well against such odds ; and not would my kinsman
HorSa-Kiri have fled, even had it been more odds, and so much methinks
I take after him, and other noble kinsmen of mine, as not to run away
before we have tried. Now will I go and meet Ossurr, whatever may
happen, but thou, Thdrhallr, shalt not be at this meeting ; I will not
reward your wife or yourself for your well-doing by having you in any
life*s danger.*' Thdrhallr bade him have his own way, but said : " My
enemies will say that I leave you unmanfully.'* ThdrSr also requested
Eyvindr to ride home, but he said : " Badly should I keep comradeship
with a brave fellow as you, if I were to run away from you at the
moment you need me most; it shall never come to pass that such
shame had befallen me.'* Thereupon they go to the place from where
they could see Ossurr sit in ambush. ThdrSr said : " Let us lurn up
the slope yonder nigh by ; there is a good stronghold." They did so, and
broke up some stones there. When Ossurr and his men saw this, they ran
up the slope. ThdrBr asked : " Who are these that behave so hostile ? "
Ossurr gave his name and said: "Is it ThdrBr Terror standing there
on the hill ? " He answered : " That is the man, and the best for you
to do is to avenge your kinsman Ormr, if there be any valour in you,
for you have got odds enough against us." Ossurr bade his men attack.
There was a hard fight ThdrBr soon did for one of them. ThdrBr and
his men let stones fly at Ossurr's men thick and fast, but they defended
themselves with shields. Some of Ossurr's men fell while the stones lasted.
Thereupon ThdrBr and his men ran down the slope and then commenced
the slaughter. A man named 6m hewed at ThdrBr while he turned his face,
and hit him on the leg, for a man attacked him in the front ; his name was
Hafthdrr, a kinsman of Ossurr. But when ThdrBr received the blow, he
turned round, and with one hand struck the other man with his sword in the
middle, and split him in twain. The second blow he dealt Hafthdrr, which
hit him in the shoulder and cut the arm from his side, and he fell dead to
the ground Now ThdrBr had killed three men, and when 6ssurr saw this,
he bade his men advance. He, with five men, attacked ThdrBr, and
the others ThdrBr's men. But the result of this fight was, that ThdrBr
killed six men, and wounded Ossurr so severely, that he was unable to fight
Of Ossurr's men fell nine, and five of ThdrBr's. After the fight ThdrBr
went up to Ossurr and dragged him out of the blood, and covered him
with a shield, so that ravens should not tear him, for he could in no way
help himself. All Ossurr's men fled. ThdrBr's men were not able to
pursue them, for none escaped unwounded from this meeting. ThdrBr
ofiered Ossurr to have him cured, but Ossurr said : " You need not offer
me cure, for as soon as I have an opportunity I shall kill you." ThdrBr

1 94 Appendix.

said he did not care for that, and sent Thdrhalk over to As to Thorgrimr,
who lived there, with a message that he wished him to come and fetch
Ossurr and heal him. He did so, and brought him home ; he was long
laid up of his wounds^ but at length became healed. Cairns were made
over the bodies of the men who fell. After the meeting at GarSshvammr,
Th6rBr went home with Th<5rhallr; he had received many wounds, but
none deadly. 6lof asked 'fhdrSr about the meeting, and he told her all
what had passed* She said : " These are great tidings ; ** she healed Th6rSr ;
but the winter passed over without any tidings of importance.

In Uie spring ThdrSr rode up into the district, for a farmer, by name of
Thoigrfmr, had sent him word to build up his hall, as ThcSrSr was the most
handy of men. Thorgrimr dwelt at Flatatunga; that farm is in the
upper part of SkagafjorSr. Th<5rSr was busy building the hall during
summer, and, when he had nearly finished, a ship from the ocean arrived
at Gisir in EyjafjorSr. Th6rSr said to the good man that he would ride to
the ship and buy the timber that he thought was most needed. The farmer
bade higi have his own way, and gave him three house-carls to bring home
the timber. Thereupon they went northwards, and stayed at the market as
long as they wanted, and brought from the north timber on many horses.
ThdrSr rode with them and was fully armed. He had a helm, a shield,
was girt with a sword and the good spear. They went over Horgdrdalr-
hei'Si down NorSrirdalr, then over the river above the fann Egilsi, and
down the banks. Then they see twelve men start up before them with
weapons. These were Ossurr and his men of f^verd. ThdrSr at once
jumped off his horse and put his shield before him. His companions
immediately show much bravery, dismount, and draw their swords. ThdrSr
bade them not place themselves in any life's danger. They said that he
who stood by should never thrive while he wanted men. Then said
ThdnSr to Ossurr : " You have not left off yet to lie in wait for me ; I
thought our last meeting was memorable enough, but you will not fare any
better than last time before we part." Ossurr answered : '' I told you I
should never be faithful to you, if my life were spared^ and this vow I shall
fulfil Let us now attack him, and avail ourselves of our greater strength."
Th6rSr says : " Yet have I not given up all hope. It seems to me uncer-
tain what you could do, even if I be by myself, but more uncertain now
that these men follow me.* Then Th6rSr ran forth against Ossurr and
thrust his spear through the man who stood foremost Th6rSr said:
'* There is one gone, and not unlikely another will follow." Ossurr with six
men now attack Th<5rSr ; but four of Ossurr's followers assailed the com-
panions of ThdrSr, resulting in the falling of them all. But with regard to
the fight between Thor^r and Ossurr, there is to be said, that Th6r5r killed
four of Ossurr's men, and inflicted upon Ossurr himself many wounds. Now
we come to where the herdsman of the good man Thorgrimr sees the fight
from the hill, and thinks he knows who the men are ; he is also aware that
Th6rSr wants men ; he runs, therefore, home to Flatatunga and tells the

Appendix^ 195

good man of the strife, and asks him to hasten to help ThdrSr. The good
man started off quickly, and rode up the banks with nine men. When
Ossurr sees the men coming, he hastens to his horse, mounts it with great
difficulty, and rides away as fast as he can, until he comes to rveri,
much dissatisfied with his journey. He had lost his men, and was himself
much wounded The three men of Th6r8r who fell were buried on the
banks where the fight took place. Thorgrfmr, the farmer, asked Thdr^r
what news there was ; and ThtfrJSr told him. ThdrSr now dwelt at Flata-
tunga and finished the building of the hall, which was a wonderfully strong
house. (This hall stood until the time that Bishop Egill was at Hdlar,
I33I-4I*) And when Th6r8r was going away, Thorgrfmr, the farmer,
accompanied him with nine men, and they all rode down SkagafjorSr.
When Ossurr saw them, he thought he had not strength enough to follow
them. They continue their journey until they come to Miklibaer in 6slands-
hlfiJ. Thdrhallr received him well, but the good wife better. Thorgrfmr
rode home, and he and ThdrSr parted good friends. Th6r8r became very
famous all over the country. This heard Mi^BfjarSar-Skeggi, and pretended
not to know what was going on between his kinsman Ossurr and Thdror.

Now ThdrSr sat at rest nearly to Yule. It so happened that, one
morning before Yule, Thdr^r wished to go and see his horse, Svi-8grfmr,
a-grazing in the walks with four mares. Thdrhallr asked Th6rSr to wait,
and rather go three nights later, " when I want to bring hay from my
stack-yards." ThdrBr bade him have his own way ; " but I shall not be
taken by surprise even if it comes to an encounter." Thdrhallr answered :
" Nay, to some odds we should not give in." Th<5r5r smiled at his words,
and said : " So it would be, if you stood by my side." The housewife said :
" May your self-praise never thrive ; I thought ThdrSr received little assist-
ance from you at the last encounter you had, and badly is that woman
married who has got you for a husband^ for you are as boastful as you are
faint-hearted." ThdrSr said : " That is not so ; Thdrhallr is not a man of
dash ; he is wary, but let it come to a trial, and he will show himself the
smartest of warriors.** Says Thdrhallr : " You need not, my good wife, be
so hard spoken, for I do not intend to draw back for one, if we are equally
well armed." They now left oflf their conversation. During their talk a
vagrant was present ; he took to his heels, and came in the evening to
Pverd. Ossurr asked him for tidings. He says he has no news to telL
''But at Miklibser in 6slandshlf'S slept I last night." Ossurr said:
"What was the hero, ThdrSr the Terror, doing?" The boy said:
" Certainly can you call him a hero, considering how disgracefully you
have fared before him ; but nothing did I see him do, except to rivet the
clinch of his sword. But this I heard Thdrhallr say, that they intended
fetching hay from the stack-yards within three nights." Ossurr says:
** How many men are they likely to muster?" The boy answers : " No
more than ThdrSr, and E)rvindr, and Thdrhallr." **Well do you say, my
boy," says Ossurr. Thereupon he got twelve men to follow him, and they

o 2

1 96 Appendix,

all rode to 6slaadshH*. This same morning Th6r5r, Eyvindr, and Th6r-
hallr rode from home. Th6rSr asked Eyvindr to take his weapons with
him, and said : " That would not be in vain." He did so. They rode out
to Svi«grfmsh6lar. Then said Th6r5r : *' My wish is, Thdrhallr, that you
stay here behind ; but Eyvindr and I will go to look for the horses upon
the hilL" Thdrhallr bade him have his own way. They went up the hill,
which m many places was covered with hard snow. Ossurr with his twelve
men came up to the stack-yard, and made a ring around Th6rhallr,
drawing their weapons, and bade the rascal tell where ThdrSr was. Thdr-
hallr was awfully frightened, and sank down by the wall, and said that
ThdrSr had gone up the slope with another man. Ossurr said : " Bad to
have a thrall for a bosom-friend,"' and struck him with the back of his axe,
so that he lay in a swoon. Then said ThdrBr to Eyvindr : " There are
men coming from down below up the hill, and I know them well. It is
Ossurr who is there, and once more wants to fight me. Now we will try
to get to Skeggjahamar, and thence to SviiSgrfmshdlar, where there is a
good stand.** E)rvindr answers : " Easy it is to get upon the crag ; ** and so
up they got ; but in the same moment Ossurr and his men came up to the
rock. ThdrSr goes right out to the edge of the crag. A mass of snow lay
on it, and right down to the bottom, and it was awfully steep. It was the
greatest danger possible to go down ; but they put their spears between
their legs, and dius slid right down all the way on to SviiSgrfmshdlar.
Ossurr and his men soon were there. ThdrSr said : " Much eagerness do
you display in trying to have my life, Ossurr \ it would not be a bad job if
you did suffer for it, nor shall we both of us go away from this meeting
alive.'* Ossurr said that it was just what he had intended, that Thdror
should not escape any longer. Thereupon they attacked ThdrSr and
Eyvindr. Th6r8r threw a spear at Ossurr, but one of his men in the same
moment ran before him, and the spear flew right through him. One man
hewed at ThdrSr^ but he put up his shield, and the blow hit it, so he was
not wounded. ThdrSr smote at this man, and dealt him a death-blow.
He struck another, the blow came on the neck, and the sword ran down
into the breast, and he fell dead to the ground. The third he pierced
through with his sword, and Eyvindr killed the fourth. Ossurr now made
an attack with great vehemence, and again fell two of his men, but Eyvindr
also became wounded. He was mach exhausted through the loss of blood,
and sat himself down, and was very weary. Then six men attacked
Th<5r5r, but in such way did he defend himself that no one was able to
inflict a wound upon him. Then Th6r5r said to Ossurr : " Difficult seems
the attack for six men, and certainly I should not wish to be called these
men's foreman, and use them only as a shield to-day ; now you ought
rather to make an attack and avenge your kinsman Ormr, and all the
disasters you have met with at my hands.*' Ossurr now became exceed-
ingly enraged at the whole affair, both because of ThdrBr's provoking
language as well as on account of the hatred he bore him. He now runs

Appendix. 197

up to hinif and hews with both hands at ThdrSr. The sword hit the shield,
and took a good slice off it. At the same moment Thdr^r hewed at
Ossurr, and the blow struck him below the left armpit, slicing the flesh
along the spine so as, at last, to sever it from the ribs, whereupon the
sword flew into the hollow of the body, and Ossurr fell dead down on the
spot Ossurr's companions, who were alive, ran away, and related the
manslaughter of Ossurr. ThdrSr had £3rvindr brought home; he was
much wounded, and was laid up for a long time, but was healed at last
A cairn ii'as cast up over Ossurr. ThdrSr narrated at Miklibaer the man^
slaughter of Ossurr.

Olof was much displeased with Thdrhallr for having told where Th6rSr
was, and so much so, that she for this reason was almost going to be
separated from him. ThdrSr laid himself out to smooth matters between
them, and said it was not to be wondered at that he should try to save his
life, since from Ossurr there was nothing but evil to be looked for. So
time wore away past Yule tide, that no tidings came to pass, and ThdrSr
kept quiet at home.

Now it is to be told that MiSfjarSar-Skeggi heard from the north the
news of the faU of his kinsman Ossurr, and thought that ThdrSr had dealt
a blow close enough to him, and filled with a mighty wrath against him,
though he let it out to no man, because he did not desire that his son Ei^r,
or the brothers of ThdrSr, should have any misgivings as to what he was
about until he should come forward openly. Secretly he had twelve of his
horses stabled, with a view to riding at ThdrSr after Yule. And secretly
he rode away from his home at Reykir with a band of twelve men ; and
riding north through VatnsskarS and down through Hegranes, and out
along the country-side, they anived, shortly before dawn of day, at Mik-
libaer. The moon shone bright They rapped hard at the door, and out
there came a man, who asked who the new-comers might be. Skeggi told
him who he was, and asked if ThdrSr the Terror were there. The man
answered: "What wilt thou with him?" He answered: '^Ask him
whether he will abide the blows of Skofnungr outside or in.*' And when
the message came in as to on what errand Skeggi had come there, ThdrSr
stood up and seized his weapons. Then spake 6ldf, the housewife:
'^ Stand up, men, to arms, and defend ye a brave man, for here are many
stalwarth fellows among you, and take care that Skeggi's journey hither
come to a disgraceful dose." Then answered Thdrhallr : '^ I forbid every
man of my household to join in an onset on Skeggi ; let no one dare to
cover my house with shame in thus dealing with a chieftain of another
district" Answered the housewife : '' Long enough did I know that at
weapons you were as worthless, as in deed you have no heart in matters of
manhood." Answered ThdrSr : " The head shall rule in the house, good
wife," and went out to the door. Skeggi charged him to step forth, so as
to have room to strike out " I shall step out," said ThdrSr, " on con-
dition that I may accompany you to the spot where I slew your kinsman

198 Appendix.

Ossurr ; for in that manner your memoiy may serve you as to what * family
blow ' I have dealt you." Skeggi said : " Be sure that your biting words
will stand thee in no stead, but I deem it well enough that on the spot the
revenge be wrought." Thereupon went ThdrSr with them to the place
where Ossurr had been buried, and they walked round the cairn. Skeggi
then drew his sword, Skofiiungr, and said : '' On this spot no one is
justified to kill ThdrBr but me.** Th6r8r drew his sword and said : " You
cannot expect, Skeggi, that I shall stand quiet before your blows while I
am unbound" At this moment eighteen men ran at them, all with drawn
swords. Thither had come Ei^r, Eyjdlfr, and SteingHmr, the brothers of
Th6r5r. Ei^r asked if Th6rBr were alive. ThdriSr said that death was not
near him. They all dismounted. Ei'Sr offered his father two conditions
to choose between— either to make peace with ThtfrSr, so that he might
ride home to 6s, and stay there in quietness, or that he (EiiJr) should help
his foster-father and fight for him. Skeggi says : ^' Long ago should I have
killed ThdrSr, had I seen an opportunity, if I had not found that you value
more, Ei'Sr, having been brought up by ThdrSr, than kinship with me."
EiSr said Thdr^Sr was deserving of it all, and that Th<5rBr had not com-
mitted any murders but in self-defence, with the exception of the murder of
Ormr, and that was excusable. Skeggi answered : *' It seems most likely
that you will have your own way, for I should not fight against you."
After this, Skeggi rides to Miklibser in the night, walks in with drawn sword
to Thdrhallr's bedstead, and bade the housewife to get up, and said that
she had too long submitted to this dastard. She did so, but asked that
Thdrhallr might be spared. He said that this rascal had lived long enough.
Thereupon he took him by the hair, dragged him to the bedside, hewed
his head ofif, and said : ^' Sooner by a great deal would I sheath Skofnungr
in thine than ThdrSr's blood, for in him to lose his life there would be a
great loss, but in thee there is none at all, and now I have atoned Skof-
nimgr for being drawn." Skeggi rode now away home to Reykir, and was
by no means pleased with his journey. TbdrSr and Ei'Sr arrived at Mik-
hba&r just at the time Skeggi was riding away. 6lof told them of the
murder of Thdrhallr. EiiSr said that less than this he could not have

•

expected, for his father had been extremely wroth when they parted. Olof
bade them stay there as long as they wished. EiSr said that her offer was
generous, and they stayed there for a week and rested their horses. Then
they prepared themselves to go away. ThdrSr went to 6l6f and said :
" This I beg of you, that you do not marry again within two winters, if you
hear I am alive, for you are the woman who would be likely to win my
affection." She answered thus: "This I will promise you, for I do not
expect a better offer of marriage than this." They now ride west to Mi^-
fjorSr and home to 6s. Eyvindr went with Thdrdr, but left a man to
manage his farm ; because he would not leave Th6rSr while he was not
reconciled as to his manslaughters. Now the winter passed over, and all
was quiet

Appendix. 1 99

Now it is said, that a ship came across the ocean to Blondu6s ; with
it came Asbjom skipper, kinsman of Skeggi. Skeggi rides to the ship and
bids Asbjorn home with him. They went to Reykir eighteen together.
Asbjom was not in good spirits during the winter. Th6r5r the Terror
dwelt at home at Os, and had many brave fellows with him, amongst them
EiiSr with eight men. Asbjorn had been but a short time at Reykir, when
he told Skeggi what his intention was with regard to the affairs between
him and Th<5r8r, and said it was sad to have no atonement for the
slaughter of his brother, Ormr, while he had strength enough for revenge.
Skeggi said this was a difficult case : " because Ei^r is always on ThdrSr's
side, and may not clearly see which side may prevail in end in the dealings
I have on hand with the men of 6s," and so they dropped their talk.
This very summer a ship arrived in White River in BorgarfjorSr. Men
rode to the market from the northern districts, both from Mi^fjoriSr and
other places. Th6r8r the Terror rode to the ship with eleven men, all
well armed Both his brothers, Eyjiilfr and Steingrfmr, were of the
company. It was said that he intended to ride up along the BorgarfjorSr
on his errands, but from the south over Amarvatnshei'Si. Skeggi heard of
this, and prepares himself secretly to start from home with seventeen men ;
so that EitSr did not know, intending to waylay Th6r8r on his retufn from
the south. Asbjom was one amongst them. They ride north over the
ridge to Vi'Sidalr, south of all habitations, then south over the heath, where
the roads divide, and slants down towards ViiSidalr. A man went with
Skeggi, hight Thorbjom, and was called the Paltry ; he lived on some
land belonging to Skeggi, and had become his client ; he was very wealthy,
but he was so stingy, that he grudged using his wealth himself or giving it
to others, and for this reason he was called '' the Paltry." He had few
people by him except his wife. EiiSr had gone out to Mi^fjarSames, to
look after the house of a man named Thorbjom, and who was called the
Puny. He was the client of Th<5rBr the Terror, and had gone with him ;
he possessed a quantity of live-stock of all kinds ; he lived on the northem
part of MiiSfjarSarnes, and his sheep went self-feeding about the woods.
Th6rSr had as much of his money as he wished for. Ei^Sr dwelt there for
a few nights, and then he rode home to 6s, and ascertained what was
going on. He collected some men and rode with fourteen men south on
to the heath after his father. Now there is to be said that ThdrSr was at
the market as long as he wanted, and when he was ready, he rode up the
BorgarQorSr, and north on to the heath so far, that he could see the
ambush. Th<Sr8r said : '* What men do you know here ?" Eyjdlfr says :
'^ I do not know for certain, but I think most likely Skeggi" Th6rSr
said : ^ Long do they persevere lying in wait for me, but although there is
a vast difference in strength, yet they shall find resistance." They then
rode against them with drawn swords. Skeggi then started up and said :
^ Asbjom, my kinsman, let us now attack them, and let them feel the
superiority of our power, and avenge now your brother, Ormr." " So it

200 Appendix.

shall be/* says Asbjorn. ThdrSr answered : '* There is many a slip 'tween
cup and lip."

They then attacked ThtfrSr and his men. ThdrSr cast a spear at
Skeggi and aimed it at his middle, but a man ran before hun, hight
Halld6rry who was a near kinsman of Skeggi. The spear hit him in the
middle and went through him, and into Uie breast of another man, who
stood behind him, and they both fell down dead. The third he struck on
the neck with the sword in such a manner that the head flew off. Now
the attack became the strongest ThdrSr and Skeggi fought the best part
of the day in such a way, that nothing was gained on either side. Eyjiilfr
and Asbjorn fought furiously, and it could not be foreseen which of them
would gain the victory; they inflicted on each other great wounds.
Steingrfmr fought very boldly and killed four men. The fighting now
changed thus, that Steingrfmr was against Skeggi ; but ThdrSr with his
men fought against Skeggi's, and killed five of them. The namesakes,
Thorbjom the Paltry and Thorbjom the Puny fought one another with
great vehemence, and the result was, that both fell dead. This very
moment Ei'Sr burst forth with his fifteen men. £i^r there and then dis-
mounted, went between them, and parted them. Skeggi was very wroth,
rode home to Reykir and Asbjorn with him, but they were anything but
pleased with their journey. Asbjorn was laid up for a long time from his
wounds, but at last was healed. ThdrSr and £i%r rode home to 6s after
the meeting. Thirteen of Skeggi's men fell in the fight, but seven of
ThdrSr's. Now both parties kept quiet, and the winter wore on. It
happened one day, that Ei^r rode to Reykir with nine men. His father
received him well. Ei'Sr said that he wanted to make peace. Skeggi
replied, that there was time enough for that, '* and stay here for the rest of
the winter." Ei^r said that so it should be. There was a great deal
of coolness between Ei'Sr and Asbjorn during the winter. £i%r had
a suspicion, from the talk of Skeggi and Asbjorn, that they were seeking
the life of ThdrSr, his foster-father : he therefore sent ThdrSr word, and
told him to be on the look-out

It so happened once during the winter, tliat EiVr became aware of his
father riding fi-om home secretly and going up the district ; he felt sure
that his father meant some great undertaking ; he therefore rode after him
with nine men. They met up by Krdksmelar. Skeggi asked EiSr where
he intended going. EiSr says : " I was minded to fill your flock, my
father." Says Skeggi : " Your intention is good, my kinsman, but I am
going home, because I am unwelL" " May be," said EiSr, " but I will ride
to Torfasta-Sir, for I have an errand there." Then they parted. Asbjorn,
and six men with him, had gone the same day to the baths. Now there is
to be said about Th(5rSr the Terror, that he woke up this same morning, and
said to his brothers : " Thus my dreams have told me, that MiSfjarSar-
Skeggi and Asbjorn are seeking my life ; I sh"all therefore leave home
to-day, and cast about for some catch or another, if an opportunity should

Appendix. 20 1

offer, for I will no longer have the two, Asbjom and Skeggi, over my head.
Let us go seven together, my brothers and Eyvindr and three other men."
Thereupon they take their weapons and ride to Reykir. Asbjom was
going from the bath just that moment, and saw the men riding. Asbjom
spoke to his men and said : *' There goes ThdrSr the Terror, and seems
unmly, and I suppose he wants me ; let us therefore turn up on the hill
and wait there. ** They did so. Now ThdriSr approached and commenced
fighting at once ; both fought most vigorously, for there was no difference
in strength. ThdrSr became quickly a man-slayer. Three men fell there
of Asbjom's men, but one of ThdrBr's. Then Th6rBr attacked Asbjom
and inflicted several wounds upon him, and he was nearly unfit for
fighting. At this very moment Skeggi appeared with his sword, Skofhungr,
drawn ; he said to Asbjom : " Why do you not flee, poor fellow ?"
Asbjom sat himself down, for he was much exhausted because of the
loss of blood. Skeggi hewed at ThdrSr and hit him in the shoulder,
inflicting on him a yawning wound. At the nick of time Ei^r came
there with nine men; he ran at once between them, and said that
they should not fight any longer: he said also that he should kill
Asbjom, except that he alone was given permission to settle affairs.
Asbjom said : *' My errand to the country was, to fetch my betrothed ; but
when I heard of my brother's slaughter, I made the resolution to avenge
him j but our fighting has become such, that I prefer peace with ThdrSr."
Thdr^r answered : " I will grant my foster-son the honour of settling this
case, but otherwise I do not care for any peace. The play might go on
in the same way as it has gone before." The result, however, was, that
they came to terms, and EiSr was to decide as to all their charges and
manslaughters. ThdrSr, Asbjom, and Skeggi all of them joined hands.
ThdrSr's hand swelled Ei^r cut from the woimd the flesh where the edge
of the sword had touched. Now Ei'Sr summoned a district meeting.
They were all present, Skeggi, Asbjorn, and Th6r5r. Then EiiJr made
the following agreement between them* " This is my verdict," said EilSr,
" that for the manslaughter of Ossurr I make two hundred silvers ; the
third hundred will be dropped on account of the plot against ThdrSr's life
and all other hostilities ; all Ossurr's men shall be unholy because of their
attack on ThdriSr ; but for the manslaughter of Ormr I make two hundred
silvers, and for the wound my father inflicted upon ThdrSr I give a hundred
silvers ; thereupon shall Asbjom have SigriiSr^ as had been decided from
the first, and ThdrSr shall have the wedding at his house. Here is also
one hundred in silver, Asbjom, that I and my foster-father will give you as
weregild for your kinsmaa" All thanked Eit^r; Skeggi was not much
satisfied, but said that he should keep peace and tmce. Thdr^r thanked
his foster-son for his verdict ; " but I will not have the hundred silvers,
which you awarded me; Skeggi shall not pay this money, for neither
would my father, ThdrJSt, nor H6ri$a-K^ have taken a bribe for their
body, therefore I shall not do so." This won great approbation, and

20 z Appendix.

Th6rSr had great honour of his speech. Now Th6r8r prepared for the
wedding, and invites many guests. And in the evening EilSr showed the
guests to their seats. Skeggi occupied the first high seat on the upper
bench, and ThdrSr sat next to him ; but opposite Skeggi, in the second
high seat, sat Asbjom, the bridegroom, and next to him EilSr. The
bridesmaids occupied the cross-benches in the upper part of the halL All
were well entertained during the evening, and all seemed merry except
Skeggi ; he was rather frowning. In the evening the guests went to sleep,
but in the morning went to the banquet as was customary. Skeggi was in
an angry mood, and fell asleep at the table ; he had put his sword, Skof-
nungr, at his back. Th6rSr was much displeased that Skeggi was so
gloomy at the banquet ; he therefore took the sword, Skofnungr, and drew
it. EiSr said : " This is useless, my foster-father." Th6rSr answers :
" What has that to do with the case ?" Ei*r says : " It is the nature of
the sword, that something must be hewed with it each time it is drawn."
ThdrSr says : " That shall be tried," and ran out, and said that it should
gnaw horsebones, and hewed at a mare, which stood in the homefield.
Ei'Sr said that it was sad that this had happened. Now Skeggi wakes,
and misses both the sword and ThdrSr ; he became wroth and ran out,
and asked if ThdrSr had taken the sword. EiiSr says : '' I am the cause of
Th6ri$r hewing the mare, because I told him the nature of the sword."
Th6r8r said that he himself was the cause of it Then Skeggi, very wroth,
said : " I will now, that we try our strength." ThdriSr said, that he was
quite ready. EiiSr and Asbjom went between, so they did not get near
enough one another to have a fight. Then said Th6r8r : *' As they do not
wish, that we should try each other's strength, I consider it most proper
that Skeggi alone should make the conditions of peace, if he thinks that
any disgrace has been done him." EiSr said : " This is a good oflfer,
father, to take self-judgment from the hands of such a man as Th6rSr is."
Skeggi accepted this offer, and awarded himself ten cows. ThdrSr said :
'*This shall be paid." Both parties were well satisfied, and parted in
friendship.

Shortly after the wedding, Th6rSr spoke to Ei?r, and said : " I do
wish, my foster-son, that you would ride with me north to Miklibaer, and
woo Olof Hrolleifs daughter, on my behalf." Ei'Sr says : " My duty it is, my
foster-father, to ride whithersoever you wish me." Thereupon they all ride
from home, ThdrBr, and EiSr, Asbjorn, Eyjiilfr, and Steingrfmr, until they
come to Miklibaer. They were well received there. In the morning
Th6rBr told his errand, and wooed 6l6f. She willingly accepted
the offer, and the bargain was soon concluded; there were witnesses
as to the promise of marriage, and after that they rode home. The
housewife, 6l6f, held the wedding at her place. Th6r^5r bade Ei^r
to the feast, as well as his brother-in-law Asbjom, and on their return
presented them with fine gifts. In the spring ThdrSr commenced farming
at Miklibaer, but his brothers, Eyjiilfr and Steingrimr, lived at 6s, in

Appendix. 203

MififjorSr. ThdrSr soon became a wealthy man through his skill in his
craft.

A man is named Thorgils, who was a good farmer ; he lived at
Hrafnagili in EyjafjorBr. He sent Th6rSr word to come north to him,
and build his halL Th6rSr promised to go, and when he was ready, he
rode from home and had one man with him ; they went up SkagafJorSr
and north over OxnadalsheiiSi About this time a ship came across the
ocean and put in at G^ir in EyjafjorSr. On board this ship was a man
hight Sorli, and called Sorli the Strong ; he was the strongest of all men,
and better fighter than any one ; he was a fine man and well liked by
everybody. He was an uncle of Ormr, whom ThdrBr slew, and of
Asbjom. Sorli gets himself horses, and intends riding west to MilSfjorSr,
to his kinsmen. He had heard of the manslaughter of his kinsman Ormr ;
he rode from the ship with seventeen men up the Oxnadalr and over the
heath to Lurkasteinn. This same day ThdrSr the Terror rode across
the heath on to the hills above Lurkasteinn. He observed then where
eighteen men made their appearance; he thought he knew who they
were, and dismounted. They soon came nearer. ThdrSr greets them,
and asks what the name of their chief is. He answered and said that
his name was Sorli. ** Are you called Sorli the Strong?" says ThdrBr.
" You may call me so if you like," says Sorli, " and who are you ? " "I
am hight ThdrBr," says he. "Are you ThdriSr the Terror, who slew
my kinsman Ormr ? " " That is the same man," says ThdrSr, " and you
may avenge him if you like ; I have not, however, prepared myself to meet
you, for I did not know you had arrived in this country, and weregild have
I paid for the manslaughter of your kinsman." Sorli said : '' Nothing
have you paid me, but I shall not take advantage* over you. All my men
shall sit by, but we two will fight together ; and should I fall, I forbid each
one of my men to do you any harm." Thereupon they advanced towards
one another, and fought veiy boldly. ThdrSr soon found that Sorli was a
great man because of his skill in arms, and he thought that a stronger man
he had never met They inflicted great wounds upon one another, but so
it ended, that Sorli fell dead to the ground, and ThdrSr was so exhausted
that he could not help himself on to the horse, without being supported by
his companions, and that was as much as they could do : they now rode
down Oxnadalr to a farm called Pverd. There lived a good man by
name of Einarr. He received ThdrSr well, and ThdrSr was laid up there
for a long time^ but at last healed. Sorli was buried in a cairn on the
hill where the fight took place, and his death was thought a very great
loss.

Now there is to be said, that when ThdrSr had recovered from his
wounds he rode to Hrafiiagil and built there a hall in the summer, which
is standing to the present day. He has also built the hall at HofSi in
HofSahverfi. Afler this ThdrSr rode west through the counties, and came
to terms with his brother-in-law Asbjom and Skeggi as to the manslaughter

204 Appendix,

of SorlL Thereupon he rode north to his estate at Miklibaer. Asbjom
purchased Rakkaland in Mi^fjorSr and dwelt there for three winters. He
was very turbulent-minded, so much so that he could not stop there with
his kinsmen ; therefore he sold the land and went abroad, and took up his
abode in Norway, and there increased his kin. Their married life turned
out a happy one, and Sigrf^r was accounted of as the most notable of
women, wherein, indeed, she took after her kin. ErSr spent his life mostly
in trading voyages, or as a henchman of noble lords, and was always held
of great worth. But when tired of that kind of life, he settled down as
a householder. In his advanced age, Skeggi went south to As in Borgar-
fjorSr to his son Ei'Sr, and remained there unto his death. He was laid
in a how to the north of the '* garth ;" and still his bones may be seen
in the '* night-meal-beacon." Ei^r lived at As to a good old age, and he
and his foster-father, ThdrSr, were always in the habit of visiting each
other, and to exchange fair gifts, nor was there ever a flaw in their
friendship as long as they lived. After his departure from Norway,
ThdrSr never saw that country again, having been made an outlaw from
it, together with his brothers, for the slaughter of King SigurSr, " Slefa,"
the son of Eric.

From Th6rSr a great family has descended, and many noble men both
in Norway and Iceland. It is commonly said, that the prophecy of
ThdrSr that in Mi^fjorSr there would always be disturbances, has come
true; for there folk have been always more quarrelsome than in other
districts. ThdrSr himself died in his bed, and no more have we heard
truthfully told of him, and so here cometh to an end the story of ThdrtSr
HreiSa (the Terror).

Appendix. 205

BANDAMANNA SAGA ;

OR,

THE STORY OF THE CONFEDERATES.

trpEiGR hight a man, who lived west in MilSfjorSr on a farm called
Reykir; he was the son of Skf^i, but his mother hight Gunnlaug; her
mother was JdmgerSr, the daughter of tffeigr, the son of JtoigerSr, north
from the SkorS. He was a married man, and his wife hight ThorgerSr,
the daughter of Vali. She was of great kin, and a fine lady. tTfeigr was
a very wise man, and the greatest of counsellors ; in all he was a great
man, but his pecuniary circumstances were ' not always easy. He owned a
deal of land, but few chattels ; he withheld from no man a meal, although
what was wanted for the housekeeping had first to be provided. He was
the liegeman of Styrmir, of Asgeirsd, who then was thought the greatest of
chiefs thereabouts, tlfeigr had a son by his wife, hight Oddr ; he was a
promising man, and soon became well accomplished. He did not have
much love for his father, and was no handicraftsman. Vali hight a man
who grew up in tffeigr's home ; he was a hopeful man^ and much liked.
Oddr grew up in his father's home until he was twelve years old. tTfeigr,
as a rule, showed coldness towards Oddr, and loved him but little. The
report was afloat that no one round about there was better accomplished
than Oddr. One day Oddr spoke to his father, and asked him to provide
him with money, saying, " and I will go away from here. It is this way,"
he continued, ^' that you show me very little honour, and I am not useful in
things you want me for." tlfeigr answers : " I shall not stint your means
beyond your deserts. This I shall do, observing all fairness, so that thou
mayest know how far such an arrangement may avail thee." Oddr said
that that would make but a poor support for him, and thereat they dropped
the talk. The day after, Oddr takes a fishing-line off the wall, and all fishing
tackle, and twelve ells of cloth. He now goes away and no one wishes him
farewell. He goes out to Vatnsness, enters the company of some fisher-
men, and received at their hands, as a loan or on hire, things that he stood
most in need of, and when they knew that his kin was good^ and he him-
self much liked, they ran the risk to trust him. He now got everything on
credit, and is with Uiem for a few seasons at the fishing place ; and it is
said that they had the best share in whose company Oddr was. There he

2o6 Appendix.

was for three winters and three summers, and it had come to this, that he
had repaid every one what he owed, and yet he had gained himself con-
siderable goods for trade. He never visited his father, and both made as
if they in no way were related to one another. Oddr liked his companions
much. Now we come to where he buys himself a ferry, and begins trans-
porting goods north to the Strands, and earns his money in that way. He
soon earned so much that he was the sole owner of the ferry, and thus he
goes for some few summers between Mi^fjoriSr and the Strands ; and now
he begins to have a good deal of money. He, however, got tired of this
occupation. He now bought a ship, and went abroad, and made some
trading voyages for a time, which turned out well He still went on
gaining money and popularity. He was frequently in the company
of chiefs and noble men abroad, and was always esteemed wherever he
was. He now became so rich, that he kept two ships trading; and
it is said that none at that time who made trading voyages were as
wealthy as Oddr. He was also more liked than other men. He never
brought his ship farther north than to EyjafjorSr, and not farther west than
to HnStafjorSr.

It is related that one summer Oddr brought his ship to Hnitafjor^r, by
BorSeyri, intending to stay there for the winter. He had been asked by
his friends to take up his abode here, and, acceding to their prayer, he did
so. He bought property for himself in Mi'SfjorSr, the estate called Melr,
where he set up a great household, and became a man of lordly home-
habits ; and people said that he was as much to be accounted of as house-
holder, as he formerly was as traveller. Indeed, by this time there was not
another man in the north of the country an equal to Oddr in all manners
of excellencies. He was better ofif than most other men, ready to avail
those who required his help or lived in his neighbourhood, but to his
father he never did a good turn. He beached his ship in HnitafjorSr.

It is said that no man here in Iceland was Oddr's equal in wealth, nay,
moreover, people would say that he had no less wealth than any three the
wealthiest taken together. His wealth in all kinds was great, in gold and
silver no less than in estates and live-stock. Vali, his kinsman, was with
him constantly, whether he were here in the land or abroad. And so Oddr
abides at his house in all the honour which has now been stated.

There was a man named Gldmr, who lived at Skri-8nisenni, a place
situated between Bitra and KoUafjorSr. He had a wife hight Thdrdfs ; she
was the daughter of Asmund Longhair, the father of Grettir Asmundson ;
their son was hight Uspakr, a man great of growth and strong, ill to deal
with, and a turbulent fellow. He soon busied himself with transport of
goods between the Strands and the northern country sides; he was a
shapely man, and a mighty one of his hand.

One summer he came to Mi"Sfj6r5r to sell his wares. And one day he
got himself a horse, and rode up to Melr to meet Oddr. They exchanged
greetings, and asked each other for common news.

Appendix. 207

Said l5^spakr : " It is this way, Oddr," says he, " that a good rumour
goes abroad as to your conditions. You are greatly praised by men, and
they deem that their affairs have come to a good pass when they have
taken service with thee. Now, my mind tells me that such will be the
case with me too, and therefore I am desirous to settle here with thee."

Oddr answered : " Thou art not very favourably spoken of by folks, nor
much liked by people generally ; thou art misdoubted for wiles neath thy
visage, and that therein tliou takest after thy kin."

Answered t^spakr : " Trust thou in this to thy own trial, but not in the
sayings of others, for few things are better spoken of than they deserve. I
am not asking thee for gifts ; I would have home under thy roof, but feed
at my own cost, and see how thou likest it"

Answered Oddr: "Thou and thy kinsmen are mighty and masterful,
and difficult to deal with, if thou makest up thy mind to it ; but since thou
demandest of me that I should take thee into my house, we will risk the
matter for the space of a winter."

This tfspakr agreed to thankfully, and went in the autumn to Melr
with his chattels. He soon got himself into Oddr's good graces, was
heedful of household business, and worked as well as any two others.
Oddr took a good liking for him, and so these seasons pass.

Now, when spring came on, Oddr requested him to remain, still saying
that so he should be better pleased. To this tlspakr agreed, and taking
upon him the oversight of the household, it went on well and prosperously ;
and people deem it a right fortunate affair how well this new man turns
out Moreover, all folk like him much, and thus the house stood and
flourished, and no man's conditions were considered more highly than
Oddr's ; indeed, his affairs were held to stand in perfect honour, but for
one drawback, namely, that he was a man without "goiSorB" (priesthood
in a heathen sense, which meant local sovereignty). At this time it was a
prevalent custom to take up new priesthoods, or to purchase such. This
also Oddr did ; and soon he had a number of retainers, for every one was
desirous of joining him. And so matters go on quietly for a while.

Oddr liked tTspakr much, and let him almost have the sole control
over the household ; he was both hard-working and mighty-working, and
useful. Now the winter passed, and Oddr got more liking for iJspakr, for
now he began to do other things. In the autumns he fetched the sheep
from the mountains, and then the gatherings were good, for not one was
missing. Now the winter passed and the spring commenced. Oddr
makes known that he intends going abroad that summer, and says that his
kinsman, Vali, should take upon him the management of the estate.

Answers Vali : " The case is this, my kinsman, that I am not accus-
tomed to this, so I prefer looking after our money and wares."

Oddr now turns to tTspakr, and bids him undertake the management
of the house.

tTspakr answers : " That is too great a task for me, though it goes

ao8 Appendix.

all right when thou art at hand.*' Oddr urged the matter, but tfspakr
begged off, though, in truth, there was nothing he liked better ; and at last
it came to this, that he bade Oddr have his will, if he would promise him
his trust and protection. Oddr answered ; bade Uspakr manage his pro-
perty in such a manner as might redound most to his credit and favour,
and added, that he had thed already, that no one else had a better will
nor knew better how to take ward of what was his.

Uspakr bade him have his way in all this, and thus the talk dropped.

Now Oddr trimmed his ship, and had wares borne on board, and when
this was bruited about, it gave rise to much talk. Oddr required no
long preparations for his journey, and Vali took berth with him, and, when
he was ready, people saw him off to the ship. tTspakr kept to him, leading
him about for a time somewhat lengthy, because they had many things to
talk over.

Now when they were but a short way from the ship, Oddr spoke :
*' There is one thing which has not been settled yet."

" What is that ? " said tJspakr.

" My priesthood has not been seen to yet," said Oddr, '' and I desire
that thou shouldst have care of it"

" That is quite out of the question," said tTspakr ; ** it is utterly beyond
me, having taken upon myself more than it is likely that I be a man for,
or ever turn properly out of hand. For this there is no man better fit than
thy own father, being a great man in affairs of law, and of much wisdom
beside.

Oddr said he was not minded to deliver it into the hands of his father,
and *' I insist on thy undertaking it" tTspakr remonstrated, being all the
time most desirous to agree. Oddr declared, that it would cost his friend-
ship if tJspakr persisted in refusing, so at last, at their parting, I^spakr
undertook the charge of the priesthood.

Now Oddr sailed abroad with good speed as was his wont, but tTspakr
returned home, and many were the rumours that went about concerning
these affairs^ people deeming that Oddr had delivered great powers indeed
into the hands of this man.

tTspakr rode to the Allying next summer with a following of men with
him, and got through his business there well and ably, knowing well how
to turn out of hand all things required by law ; and rode from the {^ing
with honour. He keeps his men abundantly, and in no way do they give
in to others, and they are not much interfered with. He is good and
prompt to all his neighbours, and in no way was the liberality or hospi-
tality on the estate considered less now than before. There was no lack
of occupation, and the business went on well. Now the summer wears
on ; he rides to the Leet and formally opens it And when the autumn
was on, he goes up to the mountains, where men go for their sheep, and
the gatherings were good ; not one sheep, neither of his own nor of Oddr's,
was missing.

Appendix. 209

It so happened in the autumn, that Ospakr came north to ViSidah: to
Svolusta'Sir ; there lived a woman named Svala. He was received with
great hospitality. She was a fine woman and young. She spoke to
X^spakr and asked him to see about her marriage ; " I have heard/' she
said, ''that thou art a great husbandman.'' He took well to this, and
they talked many things ; they liked each other, and looked sweetly towards
one another ; their talk went so far, that he asked her who was the one to
decide as to her marriage. '' No man stands me nearer," says she, ^ who
is of any worth, than Th6rarinn Longdalesgodi the Wise." Thereupon
rode Uspakr to see Th6rarinn and was received there courteously but
nothing more ; he reveals his errand and woos Svala.

Answers Thdrarinn : " I want no alliance with you ; for your behaviour
is variously spoken about, and I can see that a safe hold with both hands
cannot be had, when dealings are with such men. The business here is,
either to take up her household or to let her flit hither, or you will both do
as you like ; I shall have nothing to do with it"

After this I^spakr went away, and arrived at Svolusta^ir, and told what
had passed. Now they make up their mind and she pledges herself in
marriage with him, and she goes with him to Melr ; they owned their
estate at Svdlusta%r, and got men to manage that for them. Now tlspakr
dwelt at Melr, and kept up the hospitality in the house. He was thought
veiy overbearing. Now the winter passed, and in the summer Oddr
arrived at HnitafjorSr, and once more had he succeeded in gaining more
wealth and more favour. He came home to Melr, and looked over his
possessions ; he thought all had been kept well, and was quite satisfied ;
now the summer wears on. One day Oddr hinted to tTspakr that it would
be as well that he took his ''go^orS."

Said t)spakr : *' Yes," he says, '' that was a thing I was most unwil-
ling to take upon me, and altogether unable to, and I am quite willing
to give it up : but I think, as a rule, that that is done either at Leets or
icings."

Answers Oddr : " That may be so.**

Now the summer" wears on and towards the Leet ; and on the morning
of the Leet, when Oddr woke, he looked about and saw there were but
few men in the hall ; he had slept both sound and long ; he started up,
and now ascertained that men were altogether out of the hall. He thought
this strange, but said little. He equipped himself and some few with him.
They thought this was curious and rode to the Leet And when they got
there, there were many people present and quite ready to go away, and
the Leet had been hallowed (opened). Oddr was amazed and thought
these strange proceedings. Now men went home and some few days
elapsed.

It was one day, when Oddr sat at table and tTspakr against him, that
he, without any warning, jumped up from the table towards tfspakr with an
axe brandished in his hand, and bade him give up the " goSorS."

2IO Appendix.

trspakr answers : '^ There is no necessity for you to attack me with
such energy; thon hast the 'goSorS' when thou likest, but I did not know
that thou wert in earnest to take it" He then stretched forth his hand
and gave up the *' goiSorS " to Oddr.

Now things were quiet for a while, but from this time coldness seemed
to exist between Oddr and tTspakr. tJspakr is rather peevish in dealing
with. People suspected that he intended having the '* go^orS " for him-
self, and not to let Oddr have it, if it had not been forced from him. Now
tfspakr's household business became small, and Oddr requested nothing
of him ; they did not speak together.

It was one day that tispakr prepares himself for a journey. Oddr
pretended as if he knew nothing about it, and they parted without bidding
one another farewelL Now tTspakr goes to Svolusta^ir to his house.
Oddr made as if nothing had happened, and things are quiet for a time.

It is mentioned that in the autumn men go to the mountains, and as
regards the gatherings of Oddr they were totally dififerent from what they
had been before. At the autumn gatherings he missed eighty wethers, and
all were the best ones out of his flock. They were searched for both
in the mountains and heaths, but could not be found. This was con-
sidered wonderful, as Oddr was thought to be more lucky with his sheep
than any other man, and so much eagerness was displayed in looking for
them, that men were sent to search in other districts as well as at home,
but without any result ; and at last it was given up, and people constantly
spoke as to the cause of this. Oddr was not merry during the winter.
Vali, his kinsman, asked him why he was so dull : '^ Or do you think so
much of the disappearance of the wethers ? And thou art not very high-
minded if you let such a trifle grieve you."

Answers Oddr : *' I am not grieved at the vanishing of the sheep ; but
this methinks worse, that I do not know who has stolen them."

Says Vali : " Do you think for certain that some one has done so ? or
whom do you look upon as such ? "

Answers Oddr : '* I cannot conceal it, my opinion is that tTspakr has
stolen them."

Answers Vali : ^' Your friendship diminished from the time when you
gave him the management over all your goods."

Oddr said that it had been the greatest blunder, and that it had turned
out even better than might have been expected.

Vali said : '' Many men's talk is it, that it was strange. Now will I that
you do not so quickly lay the blame on him in this matter, for you may
run the risk of the word going abroad that an unhandsome thing had he
done. Let us come to an agreement," said Vali, " that you shall let me
have my own way as to how to act ; but I shall And out the truth in the
matter." They agreed upon this.

Now Vali makes himself ready for a journey and takes with him his
wares ; he rides out to Waterdale and Longdale, and sells his goods ; he

Appendix. 2 1 1

was much liked, and sincere of counseL He now proceeds on his journey
until he came to SvolustaiSir, where he met with good reception. I^spakr
was very merry. Vali went from there in the morning, uspakr followed
him out of the homefield and asked many things respecting Oddr. Vali
said that his household business was good. tTspakr praised him much, and
said that he was a most Uberal man : ^ Or has he suffered some losses in
the autumn ? " Vali said that was true.

Says trspakr : '* What is the supposition as to the disappearance of the
sheep ? Hitherto Oddr has always been fortunate with his sheep."

Answers Vali : " That is not one way. Some think it has been done
through human causes."

Says tlspakr : '^ Such thing might be supposed, but it is a trick that
few only could accomplish."

SaysVaU: "So it is."

Said trspakr : " Has Oddr any conjecture ? "

Said Vali : '' He says very little, but other people talk much as to
the cause of it"

Said trspakr : " That is to be expected."

Said Vali : '^ It is this way, though we have spoken this, that some
people seem to think it not unlikely that you are the cause of it ; and they
form their opinion from the fact that you parted so abruptly, and that the
disappearance of the wethers happened shortly after."

Said trspakr : " I had not anticipated that you would have spoken
in this way, and if we were not such friends I should have avenged it
sorely."

Answers Vali: "There is no necessity for your concealing it or
becoming so furious ; for you cannot deny it I have looked over your
household, and I notice that you have got more provisions than are likely
to have been obtained in a fiaiir manner."

Answers trspakr : " That will not be found so ; and I cannot conceive
what my enemies say, when my friends talk thus."

Says Vali : '' I do not mention this with any bad intention ; you alone
hear me say it Now if you do as I will, and confess before me, it will be
light for you, for I shall find way to make that right I have sold my
goods wide about the district, and I will report that you have received them,
and bought yourself slaughtered meat and other things ; no man will
disbelieve that, and thus I will contrive that you shall bear no disgrace,
if you follow my advice."

li^spakr said that he should not confess. ** Then you will see it will
fare thee worse," says Vali, " and you yourself are the cause of it" Then
they parted, and Vali returned home. Oddr inquired what he had heard
respecting the disappearance of the sheep. Vali did not say much about
it Oddr said : " Now it is needless to hide it any longer, that tlspalcr is
the guilty party ; for you would have proved his innocence, had you been
able to."

P 2

2 1 2 Appendix.

Now all was quiet during the winter, but when spring came and citation
days approached, then Oddr goes with twenty men until he comes right up
to the enclosure of SvolustaSir. Then said Vali to Oddr : " Now you had
better let your horses graze a little, but I will ride up to the house and see
tTspakr, and ascertain if he will come to terms, and then the case need go
no further." They did so, and Vali rode home. No one was outside, but
the doors were open, and he walked in. It was dark inside, and quite unex-
pectedly a man started from his seat, hewed at Vali between the shoulders,
and he fell instantly. Vali said : " Save yourself, poor wretch, for Oddr is
close at hand, and intends killing you. Send your wife to meet Oddr and
to tell him that we are agreed and that you have confessed, but that I have
gone to collect my debts out in the dales." Then said tFspakr, " This is
the worst deed I have done; I meant it for Oddr, but not for thee."
Svala saw Oddr, and says that tJspakr and Vali have come to agreement,
and that Vali bade him return. Oddr did not believe this, but rides
home. Vali perished, and his body was brought to Melr. Oddr thought
these great tidings and bad, and through this affair he got into disgrace,
and considered that the whole had turned out most fatally. Now
tTspakr disappeared, and it was not known what became of him.

Now there is to be told that Oddr prepares this case for the " l^ing,"
and summons his neighbours as witnesses* Then it so happened, that one
of the summoned expired, and Oddr took another in his stead. Then
they went to the "I^ing," and all was quiet until the sentences were to be
pronounced. And when the courts open, Oddr proceeds with the trial of
manslaughter^ and speedily succeeds in bringing it to a close, and then the
defendant is called upon to begin his pleading. Close by the courts sat
the chiefs, Styrmir and Th(5rarinn, with their bands of men. Then said
Styrmir to Tlidrarinn : *' Now the defendant is called on to plead as to
this manslaughter ; or art thou going to make any protest in this case ?"

Answers Th<5rarinn : *' In no way shall I interfere, for it seems to me
that Oddr has ample cause for prosecuting on behalf of such a man as
Vali was, especially as I consider the accused one of the worst of men."

Said Styrmir : '' True it is, that he is not a good man ; but thou art
under obligation to him."

Said Thdrarinn : " I do not care abont that"

Answered Styrmir : '^ Another thing has to be taken into consideration,
that your trouble will be far greater and more difficult, should he be found
guilty ; and it seems to me this is a case that can be defended, and we
both see it"

Says Th6rarinn : *' Long ago did I see that, but for all that, I do not
deem it advisable to delay the case."

Answered Styrmir : *' The case concerns you more than any one, and it
will be said that you behaved unmanly, if the trial proceeds, and the
defence is clear; and I certainly maintain, that it would be as well if
Oddr knew that more men are worth something than he alone ; he crushes

Appendix. 2 1 3

US, ''I^ing"-men and all, under his feet, so that he alone is mentioned; it
would do no harm if it were tried how skilled he is in law "

Th6rarinn answered : " Thou shalt have thy own way, and thee I will
help, but it promises no good, and it will have a bad end." " That cannot
be helped/' said Styrmir, started up and went to the courts, and asked,
what cases there were on. He was told. Styrmir said : " The fact is this,
Oddr, that a defence has been found in your case ; and thou hast prepared
it wrongly ; thou hast summoned ten men from home (as witnesses), and
that against the law ; thou should'st have done that at the * I^ing,' and not
in the district ; now, do one of the two, either walk away from the courts
and leave the matter as it stands, or we will take up the defence." Oddr
became silent, and pondered over the matter ; he found it was true, and
walked away from the courts with his men home to his booth ; and as
he came into the passage between the booths, a man walked towards him ;
he was getting into years. He had on a black cape with sleeves, and it
was nearly worn out ; it only had one sleeve, which was turned over on
the back ; he had in his hand a staff with a spike in ; he wore his hood
low on his forehead, and looked about with a sort of restless glance,
stamped his staff down, and walked rather bent This man was old
tifeigr, Oddr's father. Then said tJfeigr: "And that certainly is not
a matter in your favour, that in all things, your goings about^ your dealings,
are as dashing as they are rash ; or is that fellow tJspakr guilty?" " No,"
answered Oddr, " guilty he is not" " It is not like a chieftain to fool me
thus, an old man ; for why should he not be guilty — was the charge not
brought home to him ?" " Brought home to him, indeed." " What is it
then ?" said tTfeigr ; ** I thought the guilt being brought home, might
have been enough, or was he not the slayer of Vali ? " " No one gainsays
that," says Oddr. Said tffeigr: "Why is the man then not guilty?"
Oddr answers : " He brought forth a defence, whereby the case broke
down." Quoth tTfeigr, " Why should defence have been found to bring to
nought the case of such a wealthy man as thou art ? " " They found,"
said Oddr, " that it had been wrongly started from the beginning." " Im-
possible," said Ufeigr, " when thou hadst in hand the preparation of it ;
but perhaps, after all, you are more deft at money-grubbing and voyaging
than at arranging affairs in law, so as to avail ; yet I cannot help thinking
that now you are telling me the untruth." Answered Oddr : " I never
mind, then, whether thou behevest or not" " May be," said Ufeigr, " but
I knew well enough from the beginning, even when thou wentest away
from home, that there was a flaw in the starting of the suit, but thou
deemedst thyself all sufficient, and wouldst not come down to ask any one's
advice ; and now I suppose you think that you are still alone sufficient to
deal with the matter, in which the one thing to look to is to come out of it
successfully, since that is the important thing for one who deems him-
self above alL" Oddr answered : " However that may be, it is clear
enough, that from thee there is no help to be looked for." Said Ufeigr :

214 Appendix,

" And yet the only way to save thy case is to trust in me ; or how far
wouldst thou grudge thy money now to one who should happen to right
thy case ? " Oddr answered : *^ I should never stint the money, if any one
could be found to take up the suit.** Said trfeigr : '* Then let drop into
the hands of an old man a goodly purse, for many men's eyes are given to
ogling the coin." Oddr delivered to him a large purse. Then asked
tlfeigr : " Was that lawful defence brought into court or not ?" " I went
too soon from the court to know for sure," said Oddr. " Well then," said
Ufeigr, '^ the only thing that holds, is the one you did unwittingly." At
this they parted, and Oddr went home to his booth.

Now the story is to be taken up, where the old carl, tffeigr, goes up
to the fields and enters the courts. Coming to the Northlanders' Court, he
asked what cases were in process there ? He was told that some were
already awarded, but some ready for summing-up. *' How does it stand
with the case of my son, Oddr; is that disposed of already ?*' '^ Disposed
of as far as it will be proceeded with," said they. Quoth Ufeigr, '^ Is he
adjudged guilty, the fellow tispakr ?" " No," said they, " that he is not"
" What is the cause ?" said tjfeigr." " There was a defence found in the
case," said they, " a false start having been made at the outset" *^ All
right," said Trfeigr, " perhaps you will permit me to enter the court" They
said yea thereto, and he entered the doom-ring and sat down. Spake
trfeigr : '' Is the case of my son, Oddr, awarded ? " " Awarded as ever it
will be," said they. " How is that ? " said iJfeigr ; " has a wrong chaige
been brought forward against tfspakr ? Did he not slay Vali sackless ? Or
lay the flaw in the case not being urgent ? " They answered : '* There was
a defence found in the case, so that it broke down." " What manner of
defence may that be ?" said tlfeigr. He was told what it was. " So that
is it, indeed," said he ; *' do you see any propriety in giving heed to such
things, which are of no worthy and let go unjudged the worst man, being
guilty of theft and manslaughter ? Is it not a matter of great responsibility
to judge one not guilty, who is worthy of death, and thus to pass an utterly
unlawful sentence?" They said they did not deem, indeed, that such
things were right, but they had to judge the case as the law required
" That may be," said tifeigr. *' Did you take the oath ? " said tlfeigr ?
" Certainly," said they. ** I have no doubt you did," said he ; " what
were the words you used ? Were they not somewhat of this import, that you
should judge according as you knew the matter to be true, and good in
law ? Such surely must have been your words." They said that was so.
Then spoke tffeigr : " What is more conformable to truth, than to judge
the worst of men guilty and worthy of death, and deprived of all salvation,
who is truly found to have committed theft^ and to have slain Vali, an
innocent man ? Now give heed yourselves to this, which is more worth,
the words of the oath, which enjoin care as to truth, or that one word,
which demands that sentence be good in law ? Surely you will see the
thing as it is, for you must be able to perceive that it is a great respon-

Appendix. 2 1 5

sibility to judge him free who is worthy of death, having ahready taken an
oath that you would judge according as you knew would be most right ?
Now you had better look upon this case, or heavy things may fall upon
you in consequence, and you may hardly be able to escape the respon-
sibility incurred.** tffeigr let the purse at whiles drop down from under
the skirt of his cloak, at whiles he would pull it up again. He perceived
that they turned their eyes towards the purse, and he then said to them :
*^ It would be a wise thing to judge according to right and truth, even as
you have sworn, and take in return the gratitude and goodwill of reason-
able and right-minded men." Thereupon he took forth the purse and
poured out the silver, and counted it before them. *'Now I will make
manifest to you a mark of friendship,'* said he, ^ in doing which, I look
more to your credit in this matter than to my own interest; the which
I do because some of you are my friends, and some my kinsmen, and
yet all in such a way now, that necessity demands that each one should
look to himself. Now, I will give each man of you who is sitting in
judgment an ounce of silver, and half a mark to him who sums up the
case. In this manner you may both have the money, and be relieved
from responsibiUty incurred, yet without trespassing upon your oath, which,
after all, is the most important part"

Now they considered the case, and find that there is much truth in his
discourse, though they perceived that already they had brought themselves
into a bad strait as to their free dealing with the oath, and so agreed to
accept the condition which was offered them by tffeigr. Then they had
Oddr sent for, and he arrived there just as the chieftains had gone home to
their booths. Now the suit is brought up forthwith, and. I^spakr is sentenced
guilty, and witnesses are called to the sentence being passed At things
thus done, people went away home to their booths. During the night fol*
lowing, no rumours got abroad of what had been done. But at the Mount*^
of-Laws, in the morning, Oddr stood up and spoke out in a loud voice : " Last
night a man, hight tTspakr, was declared guilty in the Court of the North-
landers for the manslaughter of ValL Let it .therefore be said, that the
convict is to be known by these marks : he is a man great of growth, of
brown hair, large-boned face, dark eyebrows, huge hands, big legs, and
an altogether bulking stature, and is one of the most scoundrel-looking of
men that eye could be set upon." At this announcement people were very
much startled, as many of them had as yet had no news of the affair, and
all men thought that Oddr had sternly followed up his suit and brought it
to a successful close, considering to what pass the case had come already
before.

Now it is to be told, that Styrmir and Thdrarinn had a talk together.
Styrmir spake : '* What shame and disgrace we have had in this case !"
Th6rarinn said that was like enough, '< for surely wise men must have had
their hand in this matter." '^ Yea," said Styrmir, ^* but dost thou see any
way to setting things right?" Said Thdrarinn: '*I do not see how that

a 1 6 Appendix.

may be, at least not soon." " Not soon ; but what hast thou in thy mind's
eye ? " said Styrmir. Thdrarinn answered : " It is to set up a counter-chaxg^e
for bribe having been brought into court ; that, I am minded to think, will
hold good" " You are right," said Styrmir ; and so they went home to their
booths. Now they call together their friends and marriage relations for &
council. Among these were Hermundr, the son of lUugi ; Gellir, the son
of Thdrdr ; Egill, the son of Skiili ; J^mskeggi, the son of Einarr ; Skegg^
broddi, the son of Bjami ; Thorgeirr, the son of Hallddr ; and Styrmir and
Thdrarinn. These eight men now go apart to discuss matters. Styrmir
and Thorarinn set forth the bearings of the case as it stood, hinting, at the
same time, what a catch there would be in the wealth of Oddr, bein^
enough to bring them all riches and contentment Now they make a firm
compact amongst themselves jointly to take up the suit, and to follow it up
until they had brought it either to a declaration of guilt against Oddr, or
secured self-doom for themselves. After this they join hands and oaths,
being sure that nothing may trip up this arrangement, and that no one may
be found so confident in his knowledge as to dare rise against them.
After this they separated, and people ride home from the " f*ing ;" and
thus, for a beginning, the matter went on all in secret Now Oddr looked
with pleasure upon his journey to the " i*ing," and love between father
and son stood now better than it had done before. And thus, during these
seasons, Oddr sits in quiet peace.

In the spring father and son met each other at a bath, and trfeigr
asked what news there was about. Oddr said he heard none, and asked
his father again what he knew. tTfeigr said that Stjrrmir and Th6rarinn
with their confederates had gathered a force, and were minded to go to
Melr to take out summons. Oddr asked what the cause thereof might be.
trfeigr told him all their counsel. Answered Oddr : " That does not bode
*me any trouble." Rejoined tlfeigr : " Very likely, it will be no more than
you will be able to cope with." Now time wore on until the days of the
summons, and Styrmir and Thdrarinn came to Melr with a large following
of men. Oddr also had a number of men about him. They set forth
their cause and summoned Oddr to the " i*ing " for having had bribe
brought into court in trespass of law. Nothing else came to pass at that
time between them, and so they rode away with their band.

Now it so happened again that father and son met again, and had a
talk together, and trfeigr asked if he deemed yet that there was nothing
in this ; answered Oddr : *' It is not a matter that seems to me to bode
any heavy trouble." " Such is not my view," said trfeigr ; " or dost thou
know clearly to what pass things have come ? " Oddr said he knew what
had transpired already, trfeigr answered : " There is a longer train
behind, I am minded to think, for they have been joined by other six
chieflains, who are of the foremost of their kind." Oddr answered : " They
Seem to think that no trifle will do it" tlfeigr spoke : " What proposest
thou then to do?** Oddr answered: "Why, what should I do but to

Appendix. 217

write to the ' ing' and secure assistance of men there." I^feigr
answered : '' That does not seem to me to promise any good end as the
matter stands, for such is the nature of most men, that it is not safe to have
one's honour depending on their assistance." '' What is the counsel then
to be," said Oddr. T^feigr spake : ^ It is my counsel that thou shouldst
make thy ship ready for sea, while the ' I^ing ' is sitting, and have all thy
ch9.ttels secured before people ride away from the ' Ping.' But, for the
rest of them, which dost thou think is the most safely placed, that which
they shaU lay distress on, or that which I have secured in my keep. Of
two evil things I think it a shade better placed which thou hast" And
now Oddr hands over to his father a big purse full of silver^ and thereat
they parted. Now Oddr made his ship ready and hired him a crew.
And so time wore away towards the '' ^ing," and this understanding was
kept so secret, that few people were any the wiser for it

Now the chieftains ride to the *' I^ing," each with a numerous follow-
ing. The old carl Ufeigr was in Styrmir's band. The confederates arranged
between them to meet on Bldskdgahei'Si, these of them, namely, Egill
and Styrmir, and Hermujidr and Thdrarinn ; and from that meeting they
all rode south to the '* i^ing "-wolds. From the east there came riding
Sk^;gbroddi and Thorgeir Halld6rson out of Langidalr, and from the
north came Jdmskeggi, and all these met together at ReySarmiUL And
now all these bands rode down unto the wolds, and thence unto the
'* i^ing." Now the things most talked of are the law affairs of Oddr, and
all men take for certain that here no one will come forward to defend,
deeming that few men have a heart thereto, and no one would avail therein,
seeing what great chieftains there were to cope with. The confederates,
on their side, show great hopefulness about their case, and behave not a
little braggingly thereanent. Not a man ventured to utter a word against
them. No one comes forward with full powers from Oddr to see his case ;
but he fits his ship out in HnitaljorSr, when people were gone to the
" ting."

It was one day that old carl T^feigr went from his booth deeply rapt
in care ; not a helper to be seen, but heavy troubles to cope with ahead ;
he sees hardly how he may have might alone to withstand such chieftains,
the case in itself affording no ground of defence. He went about bent and
drooping, from one booth to another, reeling on his feet, and in this
manner he strolled about for a long time. At last he came to the booth
of Egill at a time when people had come to him to confer on sundry
affairs with him. tffeigr turned aside from the door of the booth, and
waited there until the men went away. Egill saw them out, but when
he was about to turn back into the booth, Ufeigr, turning about, posted
himself in his way and greeted him. Egill glanced at him and asked him
who he was. *' I am hight tifeigr," said he. Egill said : '' Art thou the
Either of Oddr ? " He said he was. " Then thou shalt be minded to talk
his affairs over, but it is no good to come to me on that matter, for this

2 1 8 Appendix.

case is gone much too far to the wrong for me to have any availing word
to say thereto ; besides there are other men who have more to say in this
matter than I have, namely, St3nrmir and Thdrarinn, for they take to them-
selves the lead while we others follow." Then tifeigr answered : " Well
then, rather than talk over Oddr's afifairs, which have at times looked
better than they do now, I shall hit on something else to divert my mind ;
and I take it that thou art not the man to refuse to talk to me ; for it is
now the chief amusement of an old carl to have talk with men like you and
thus while away the hours." Egill answered : " Speech, at any rate, shall
not be forbidden thee." And so the two walk away together and sit down.
Then tJfeigr took up the word : " Art thou a bonder, Egill ? " He said
he was, ** Art thou keeping house at Borg ? " ** True," said EgilL Spake
tifeigr : '' Good things only and favourable are told to me about thee ;
I am told that you stint meat to no man, and are a lordly man of thy
house, and that I and you have not a few things in common, both being of
a great family, open-handed, but uneasily circumstanced as to means; and,
moreover, that thou art fond of bestowing gifts on thy friends." Egill
answered : '' I should like it well to be spoken of by people as thou art,
for I know that thou art a man of good family and a wise one withal"
Ufeigr said : " We are unlike, however, for thou art a great chieftain, who
fearest nothing that may stand in thy way, and givest never in with whom*
soever thou mayest have to deal, but I am amannikin, but as to temper and
mind, there, I think we are somewhat alike ; and it is a great pity that men
of such lordliness and large-heartedness should be the worse off for means."
Egill answered: ''May be that soon things may take a turn, so as to
make my circumstances easy." " How may that come about ? " said
tjfeigr. " It seems to me," said Egill, " that if Oddr's wealth should drifk
into our hands we shall not be in lack for money ; for great things, indeed,
are told to us of all his riches," Said tlfeigr : " It is no exaggeration if
he is reported to be the richest man in Iceland ; yet may be it is matter of
curiosity to thee what thy share in the wealth may amount to, seeing that
thou art so much in want of money." " That is true," said Egill, " and a
good old carl and wise thou art, and knowest, no doubt, the whole truth
about Oddr's riches." He said : '* I am minded to think that that matter
is better known to no one than myself, and I can tell you this, that no
one, who brings the greatest reports of it, states its greatness to its full
extent ; and yet I have considered in my mind already how much of it ■

would come into thy share. And I will not withhold from thee to what
amount thou wouldst be made the happier man, for thy share would be '

one-sixteenth part of the land of Melr." " The devil take it," said Egill,
** then the wealth is not so great as I expected; but how can that be?"
Answered Ufeigr: "No, no; the riches are great enough, but still I am
minded to think that this will be all that thou gettest ; have ye not
arranged that you yourselves should have one-half of Oddr's wealth, and
the Quartermen the other half; then my counting comes to this, if there

Appendix. 2 1 9

are eight confederates of you together, that the half of the land of Melr
must fall to your share. This is according to your own arrangement, and
according to what you have declared yourself in an affair taken up in such
an unheard-of manner as no example may be found to match — ^but, what-
ever the character of your suit, these are your terms. Now did you really
expect that my son, Oddr, would sit quietly to let you come upon him
rushing from the south ? No, Oddr is not the man to sit unready in your
way, and abundant as is his wealth, he is no less abundantly gifted with
wits, and ready of counsel, when he deems that such is wanted ; and it
misdoubts me that his good ship will glide none the slower under him
through the Iceland main that ye declare him a guilty man here. But a
guilt it should never be called, which is so wrongly taken up, and surely it
shall &11 on those who have undertaken it, and by this time I expect him
to be out on the main with all that is his, with the exception of the land at
Melr, that he intends to leave to you. Rumour, too, had told him that
there was no long distance from the sea up to your house at Borg, in case
that he should bring his ship into Borgarfjoi^r. Now these things will
come down, even according as they were set up, that ye will reap thereof
only shame and disgrace, as you richly deserve, besides every man's blame."
Then said Egill : ** This looks true as day ; I now perceive that there are
tricks at play in the case ; for was it ever to be expected that Oddr should
remain quiet and unready ? Nay, nor shall I have a word to say to this
any more, for there are some men in this case who most eagerly urge it
on, and to whom I should not grudge the shame of its coming to grief,
such as Styrmir, or Thdrarinn, or Hermundr." tffeigr spoke : ** It will
turn out, even as is right and due, that they will get many a man's blame
for all this ; but I should be very sorry to know your lot to be any the
worse for it, as, out of all ye confederates, I have the greatest liking for
thee." At this word he let sink from under his cloak a mighty purse.
Egill turned a swift side glance towards it, seeing which, tlfeigr pulled up
the purse in haste, and said : '* It is this way, EgilV said he, ^' that all,
what I have told to you, wiU come pretty nearly true, as I imagine ; but I
would fain do you some honour, if I might ; " and out he pulls the purse,
and pours the silver into the skirt of Egill's cloak, full two hundred in
silver of the finest alloy. " This thou shalt have from me if thou refrainest
from going against Oddr in the case, yet I mean to honour thee thereby."
E^gill answered : " Indeed, I think you are no mean rogue, old carl as thou
art ; never expect me to break an oath which once I have taken." tlfeigr
answered : " Indeed, you are not the men that you deem yourselves to be,
ye chieftains, who have no eye to any comfort for yourselves, if ye happen
to drift into some difficulty. Now thou hadst better not act on thy declara-
tion, for I think I can hit on a counsel whereby thou mayest hold to thy
own oath." " What is that ? " said Egill. tifeigr said : " Have ye not
determined to carry the case unto guilt, or otherwise to secure for your-
selves self-doom in it?" Egill said that was so. Then said tjfeigr:

220 Appendix,

*' May be, that we, Oddr's kinsmen, may be allowed to choose which of the
two it shall be. Now it might come to pass that the umpiredom should
drift into thy hands, in which case I should like thee to have the settle-
ment" Egill answered : '* Thou speakest the truth, and sly old carl and
wise art thou ; yet I am not prepared for this, for I have neither might nor
following strong enough to stand alone against all these chieftains, for
enmity is sure to come in exchange for any hitch arising." Said Ufeigr :
" How would it do if another confederate could be got to join you ? "
" Ah 1 that is more like," said Egill. Ufeigr said : *' Whom of the con-
federates would you like best to choose ? never mind me, imagine that I
have a free choice of them alL" " Well, there are two I will mention,"
said Egill : ^' Hermundr is my neighbour, but between him and me dealings
are ill ; another is Gellir, and him I will choose." " It costs a great self-
sacrifice," said tlfeigr, " for I should like to see every confederate, except-
ing thee alone, come out of this matter in a worse case. But behke, he
has wits enough to see which is the best of two things to choose, to take
wealth and honour, or to forego the money and have disgrace alone.
Now, art thou ready to take upon thee the matter, if it come to thee with
a view to lowering the fine." " Yes, surely," said Egill. " Then that is
a matter agreed on between us," said tlfeigr ; " in a short while I shall be
with you again."

Now Ufeigr parted from Egill and went away. Again he wanders
about on a dragging foot between the booths, yet not so drooping within
himself as he looked decrepit of foot, nor so loosely knit of tongue as he
looked lame of walk. At last he came to the booth of Gellir Th^rSarson,
and bids him be called out He came out, and was the first to greet
trfeigr, for he was a man of humble manners, and asks him what his
errand was. tTfeigr answered : " I came here wandering by chance."
Gellir said : " Thou art minded, belike, to talk Oddr's case over." tTfeigr
answered : *' I am not going to talk about that, it is a matter with which I
will have nothing to do, and I came here to divert my mind otherwise."
Gellir said : " What hast thou got to say then ?" tTfeigr said : " I am told
that thou art a wise man, and with wise men it is my greatest delight to
talk." Then they sat down and fell a-talking together. Then asked
trfeigr : " Who among the young men of the western country sides are in
thy eye likely to make great chieftains ?" Gellir answered, that there were
a good many to choose among, naming as such the sons of Snorri " Go%i,"
and the men of Eyri. *' I have been told much the same thing before,"
said tJfeigr, "and now I am glad, speaking with a man who is both
truthful and just, to have heard the same report But who among the
women there in the west are considered the best matches ? " Gellir named
the daughters of Snorri " GoSi," and those of Steinddr of Eyri. " Just
what people have told me," said tlfeigr ; " but how is it, have you not got
any daughters?" Gellir said, he had, indeed. "Why dost thou not count
them?" said l)feigr; "surely, to judge from the father, there can be no

Appendix. 221

fairer women than thy daughters ; or are they not married ? " " No," said
he. " How is that?" said tffeigr. Gellir said : " Because wooers have not
come forward who were at the same time thoroughly wealthy and well
settled, highly connected, and well mannered. Not that I am a wealthy
man myself, but I am difficult to please on account of my kin and honours.
But why should we not now ask about all things ? Who are the men in
the northern country sides who are likely to make chieftains ?" " Good and
many men to choose among," said I^feigr. ''The first I mention Einarr,
the son of Jdmskeggi, and Hallr, the son of Styrmir ; and some people will
say that my son, Oddr, be not an unlikely man ; and talking of him, brings
to my mind the words he committed to me, namely, that he would fain
ally himself with thee, and would ask for the one of thy daughters who is
hight Ragnhei^r." " Yes," said Gellir, " time was when to this a favour-
able answer would have been given \ but, as matters now stand, I fear this
will have to be delayed." "What might the reason be?" said tTfeigr.
Gellir said : '' People think that darkness is drawing round thy son Oddr's
conditions, as affairs now stand." T^fetgr answered : " I tell thee truth-
fully^ that thou wilt never give her better away than now thou hast the
chance, for all folk agree that he is as well mannered as any other man ;
nor is he in want of money, nor any other bliss. But thou art in strait
circumstances yourself, and it might come to pass that in him thou shouldst
find a great support when need be ; for a large-minded man he is towards his
friends." Gellir said : " This would be looked at if these cases should not
happen to be hanging over hint" '' Don't mention that tomfoolery, in
which there is nothing but shame and folly enough to those who have it on
hand." " Yet it looks more likely to come to a bad than a good end,"
said Gellir, " and I will not say yea to this." iJfeigr answered : " May be,
Gellir, that ye all of you come by bliss enow in this afifair ; yet I may be
allowed to tell thee what thy share will amount to ; for that I know well,
and at best, I can tell you, it will come to this, that ye confederates, eight
of you together, will get the half of the land of Melr; in which case thy
own share will not be a desirable one, with the little amount of money thou
gettest at the forfeiture of manliness and chieftainly honour, thou being
called the most high-minded man in the country." Gellir asked how this
might t)e. tJfeigr answered : '' I am minded to think that even now Oddr
is out on the main with all his belongings, except the land of Melr. How
could you expect him to sit quiet and unready, leaving you to choose of
his what you liked, and divide it up between you ? No," said I^feigr ;
'' but he let fall the word, that if he should happen to come into Brei^ifjorSr,
then he would pay a visit to your homestead, and would then choose brides
from thy home as it seemed good to him, adding also that he had got with
him tinder-boxes enough to set fire to thy home if he chose. He also
hinted that, should he come into Boi]garfjorSr, he had heard that there was
no long distance firom the sea up to Borg. Likewise he let fall a hint that,
if he came into EyjafjorSr, he would not miss the home of Jdrnskeggi ; so

222 Appendix.

also, if he came into Eastfirtbs, he would try to make out where the abode
of Skegbroddi might be. Now he is in no hurry himself ever to come back
to Iceland. But your lot will be a deserved one— that of shame and
disgrace. Now it pains me to think that such a good chieftain, as thou
hast been hitherto, shouldst come to such a sore grief, from which I fain
would spare thee." Gellir said : " This is likely to be true, and I shall
never mind, if ships be resorted to, to lessen the restraint I allowed
myself to be led into this, more through friends, than because it was a
matter on which I had set my mind." Ufeigr said : "When thou gettest
the better of the rashness which is in your mind, I guess thou wilt deem it
a more honourable thing to marry thy daughter to Oddr, my son, even as
I proposed at the outset Look at the money he sends thee, with the
words that he would himself see to her proper dowry, for he knew how
badly thou wert off, and here are two hundred in silver of the finest alloy.
Now look to this, who it is who offers thee the choice of giving thy
daughter away to such a man, who not only will settle on her the dowry,
but is most likely to deal with thee as if he never could be of service
enough to thee, thy daughter coming into a state of perfect earthly bliss."
Gellir answered : " The offer is so great that it is hard to grasp it, but for
nothing will I do it to betray those who trust me ; but I clearly see that
out of the suit there will never come anything but blame and disgrace."
Answered tFfeigr: "What clever men you are, ye chieftains; whoever
urged thee to betray those that trust in thee, or to trespass on thy oath P
But it may come to pass that the umpiredom drift into your hands, and
that so you may be able to cut down the fines, and yet to hold to your
sworn oath to all." Gellir said : " This is true, and a wondrous sly old carl
thou art ; yet it is too much for me to have alone to front all these chief-
tains." trfeigr said : " How will it do if I get another to join you? Wilt
thou then see to the righting of the case ?" " That I will," said Gellir, " if
thou bringest it about, that I shall have to frame the award." I^feigr
answered : " Whom dost thou choose ?" Gellir answered : " I shall choose
Egill, for he is my nearest neighbour." trfeigr answered : "The devil you
do, thou choosest the very worst man of your company, and I am sorely
loath to allow him any share of honour at all ; and I am not at all sure that
I shall go to the extent of such a sacrifice." " Have thy will," said Gellir.
tjfeigr said : " Art thou, then, ready to enter the matter on my terms, if I
bring him into it with thee, for I guess he will be able to see which of two
things is the best, to have some honour or none." "Considering the
great bargain offered me," said Gellir, ^* I shall venture to run the risk."
Then spake trfeigr : " I and Egill have talked the matter over already, and
it does not seem to him a difficult one, and he has already entered it
Now shall I offer you a counsel as to how the thing is to be done ? The
bands that you confederates have brought up, walk mostly in company
together. Now, no man will suspect anything, though thou and Egill
should talk together whatever you like on going both together to vespers/'

Appendix. 223

Now Gellir accepted the money, and the matter was settled between them.
After that tFfeigr went away, and straight to the booth of EgiU, at this
time neither reeling on foot nor bent of body ; for now he was well pleased.
In the evening people went to even-song, and Egill and Gellir talked the
matter over, and settled what to do, no man misdoubting what they
were at

Now it is to be told that on the second day after this, people went to
the Mount of Laws, and in crowds they went Now Egill and Gellir
gathered their men together. But tFfeigr helped Styrmir and Thdrarinn
to gather theirs. And when all those who were expected had come to
the place, then tjfeigr demanded silence and held forth : — " Hitherto I
have not been meddling with the affair of my son Oddr, but knowing now
that here have come together the men who have chiefly busied themselves
with this suit, I will first direct my speech, as concerning the suit, to
Hermundr, that this being a matter which has been started in a manner
unheard of and imexampled, has been proceeded with in the same manner,
and therefore is not unlikely in a similar way to come to an end. I now
will ask, whether the case may be allowed to be setded peacefully."
Hermundr answered : '' We will take nothing but self-doom." trfeigr
answered : " I doubt that any example may be found of one man having
ever allowed self-doom to eight men in one and the same case, while
there are examples enough of one man having done so to another. But
since it seems that ever3rthing in this suit has gone and must go on in a
way unprecedented in other suits, I make this proposal, that two of your
confederation act as umpires in the matter." Hermundr answered : '^ That
we are quite willing to agree to, and care not which two of us it shall be."
Then tifeigr said : '' You will then allow me the slight vantage of choosing
out of the confederates the two I like." " Yea, yea," said Hermundr.
Then spake Thdrarinn : '' Say yea to those things only to-day which thou
mayest not have to regret to-morrow." " What has been said," answered

• Hermundr, '^ shall not be unsaid again." Now I^feigr cast about for bail,
which was an easy matter, as with him the money was considered safe. Now
people join hands and handsel, that the fines shall stand, which they agree
on, whom tffeigr setdes upon as umpires. But the confederates handsel
that all criminal proceedings shall be dropped. Now it is so arranged
that the confederates shall proceed with their bands up to the wolds. The
followers of Gellir and Egill kept together and sat down in a certain place,
forming a circle. But tifeigr went within the circle, and looking round,
he lifts the hood of his cloak, stroking his arms, and standing more erect

• than erst, he blinked his eyes about, and then spoke : " There sittest thou,
Styrmir, and most men will think it wondrous that I should not call thee
in a case which concerns me, since I owe allegiance to you, and have
to look to thee for my support, and especially as thou hast received many
good gifts firom me, though thou hast requited them all with evil My
mind tells me that thou wert the first of men to set going this matter of

224 Appendix.

enmity against my son Oddr, and hast done most in having the case
opened up again, — therefore I except thee."

'* There sittest thou, Th6rarinn/' said trfeigr, " and it is a certain thing
that thou lackest no wit to pass judgment in this case ; yet thou hast been
an unserviceable man to Oddr in these matters, and wert the first of men
to join Styrmir therein, — therefore I except thee."

'' There sittest thou, Hermundr, a great chieftain^ and I am minded to
think that it would be well if the decision of the case came to thee, yet no
man has been so madly eager since this matter began as thou hast been ;
for thou hast shown that thou wouldst only show forth dishonour \ nor has
thy reason been any other than dishonour and avarice, for thou art in no
lack of money, — ^therefore I except thee."

''There sittest thou, Jdmskeggi, and it is not that thou art not
accounted of highly enough, why thou shouldst not be umpire in the case ;
nor wouldst thou deem it a bad thing if it should come to thee to judge,
for such is thy ambition, that at Vo%la|)ing thou hadst a standard borne
before thee, as if thou wert a king, yet thou shalt be no king in this
case, — ^for I except thee."

Now trfeigr looked about and spake : '' There thou sittest, Skeggbroddi I
Is it true that King Harold SigurSssen said, when thou wert his henchman,
that he deemed thee the best fitted man for a king among all who were
with him then ? " Broddi answered : " The king often spoke well to me ;
but it does not follow that he always spoke as he thought" Then said
Ufeigr : '' Thou shalt be king over something else than this case, — ^for I
except thee."

'* There sittest thou, Gellir," says Trfeigr, '' and nothing but avarice
alone has drawn thee into this case : but thou art in some way to be pitied,
being a man of smaU means, but having many irons in the fire. Now I
know not, although I consider all of you worthy of evil only in this case,
but that some one had better come out of it with some honour, for there
are few of you left, but I cannot bring my mind to choose those whom I
have already excepted, and therefore I choose thee, because hitherto thou
hast not been chaiged with wrong-doing."

'' There sittest thou, Thoigeirr Hilldomson," says trfeigr, '' and it is a
well-known thing that to thy decision never came a case on which aught
depended, for thou knowest not how to sift a case, having no more wits
therefor than an ox or an ass, — ^therefore I except thee."

Then I^feigr looked about and spake this ditty :

" 111 is man's fate
In old age to tumble ;
Which all men depriveth
Of sight and wisdom.
I had the choice
Of able umpires ;
Now's a wolf's tail
Left alone on the hook ;

Appendix. 225

And with me it has fared after the fashion of wolves, who eat each other
up until they come to the tail, not knowing till then what they are about
I have had to choose between many chieflains, but now he alone is left
from whom no one looks for aught but evil ; and who has proved himself
to be a man of unfair dealings beyond all others, and recks nothing what
he does to gain money, if he only gets it; and it maybe said in his excuse,
for not having been particularly nice as to his share in this matter, that
many a one has been netted in it, who was called a righteous man before,
and has cast away from him his worth and manliness in exchange for
iniquity and avarice. Now no one would expect me to choose him, from
whom every man may look for evil, for there shall not be found another
equally sly fellow in your company. Yet I must be content to choose
him, every one else having been excepted.^ Egill spake, and smiled at the
same time : " It befalls, as it has often befallen before, that honour comes
to me, yet not because others intended it Now, Gellir, we have to take
our business in hand, let us stand up and go away and talk the matter over
between us." They did so, and walked away thence and sat down. Then
said Gellir : " What have we got to say about this ? " Egill said : " It is
my counsel to award a small fine, as I do not see what else we can do,
since in any case we shall reap a little favour for this." '' Shall it not be
enough if we make the fine of the value of thirteen ounces of any current
goods," said Gellir, " for this cisise was started very wrongly, and therefore
it is aU the better the less they shall be pleased with the award ; but I am
not eager to undertake the declaration of it, for I am afraid it will be
received badly.'* " Do whichever thou choosest," said Egill, " to declare
the award or to undertake the defence of it" " Then I choose," said
Gellir, " rather to declare it" Now they went to meet the confederates.
Then said Hermundr : '' Stand we up, and listen to the shame that shall
befall." Then said Gellir : " We shall not be wiser by waiting ; it will all
come to one thing, and my and Egill's award is, that a fine of thirteen
ounces of silver be paid to us confederates." Then said Hermundr : " Did
I understand it right, didst thou say thirteen tens of ounces of silver?**
Egill answered : " Surely, Hermundr, thou wert not sitting upon thy ear
for thou wert standing ! thirteen ounces, certainly I and in such wares as
are offerable only to paupers, for it shall be paid in rags of shields, and
bits of broken rings, and in whatever trifles can be collected for it ; and
you may like the worst" Then said Hermundr : " Now, Egill, thou hast
betrayed us I " " Is it so," said Egill ; " dost thou find that thou art
betrayed?" '^ Betrayed, indeed, I deem myself, and thou art the man
I have to thank for it" EgiU answered : '' I deem it well to have betrayed
a man who trusts in no one, not even in himself, the which I can prove,
for thou didst hide thy money away, that thou intendedst that even
though it should come into thy mind to look for it, you should never find
it" Hermundr answered : " This is like thy other lies, EgilL Thou didst
say the other winter, when thou camest home after having been invited by

^26 Appendix.

me froiki your abode of poverty during Christmas, the which thou accep-
tcdst gladly as might be expected ; but when Yule was over, sadness
settled upon thee, and no wonder, having to look forward to a return to
starvation ; but I, finding it out, offered thee to remain still with another
man with thee, which offer thou tookst and wast very glad of it But in
the spring after Easter, when thou returnedst to Boig, thou spreadest the
news, that thirty horses, turned out into ice and snow, and had all been
eaten/' Egill answered : '' I think it would be difficult to say too much
about the flaws of your household ; but of these horses I think that few or
even none were eaten. But that all men know, that neither I nor my
people are ever of lack of food, though my circumstances as to money
being not always equally easy. But of the state of thy own house, the less
you say the better." "I should like," said Hermundr, "that we two
should not have to meet next summer at the ' i^ing' again." Answered
Egill : " Now I will say that which I thought would never come over my
lips, namely, to thank you for what thou hast said ; for as to me, it has
been foretold, that I shall die of old age, but the sooner the trolls take
you, the better." Then spake Styrmir : " He, who tells the worst of thee,
E^gill, tells the truest tale, even he who calls thee a rogue." " That is all
right," said EgiU ; " the more thou blamest me, and the more proofs thou
bringest in support of it, the better, because I was told that at a banquet
you amused yourself by choosing your equals, and that thou choosest for
thy equal none but myself. Now it is certain," said he further, " that
thou hast about thee some mighty garments to clothe thyself in, about
which other people know nothing ; and thou must have the best knowledge
of thyself as of thy other matters. But in this we are unlike to each other,
that we both engage in lending other people assistance, and I give all
I can, sparing myself in nought, but thou takest to thy heels, as soon as
a few blacklegs * are aloft It is also true that my household always lies
heavily on me, and I spare food to no man, but thou art stingy of meat, as
may be seen from this, that thou hast a bowl, which is called ^ Meatsome,'
the contents of which no one knows about, no matter how many may be
the visitors to your house except thou alone. Now it is no dishonour to
me that my servants endure hardships when want is at the door, but it is
a greater dishonour to starve one's household when there is nothing
lacking. Now look about and try to see who that man is." Then Styrmir
was silent Next Thdrarinn stood up, and Egill spoke and said : " Hold
thy peace, Th6rarinn, and sit down, and put no word in in this matter,
for I shall have such reproaches to lay on thee, as that thou wouldst
wish that thou hadst better been silent" Thdrarinn answered : " Let
wholesome rede be taken whencesoever it come ; " and he sat down
and was silent Then said Thorgeur: "All men see, that this is

* A slang term for an axe, with a handle blackened with ashes.

Appendix. 227

a vain award and a foolish to make only thirteen ounces of silver and
no more for such a great case as this is." '* But I thought," said Egill,
'' that thou wouldst find this award a right significant one, as indeed thou
shalt find out, if thou lookest about, and thinkest for thyself, for thou wilt
surely not have forgotten, that at the Leet of Rangd, the son of a cot carl
left thee with marks of thirteen bumps upon thy pate, for which thou
didst award to thyself thirteen ewes with lambs, which reminder I should
have thought thou wouldst not deem a bad one." Thorgeirr was silent,
but Skeggbroddi and Jdmskeggi would have no exchange with Egill.
Then trfeigr sang a song in order that this *' l^ing " and the end of this
a£fair should be borne in mind by many. And Egill answered : '' Thou
mayest well boast, that never did one man set his course against so many
chieftains combined against him."

Now after this people went home to their booths. Then spake Gellir to
Egill : " I would that we both should keep together with our men." And
so they did. Now during the remainder of the " i*ing," there was much
secret enmity about, and the confederates were most highly indignant at
the turn their affair had taken. But the awarded money nobody would
have. And thus people rode away from the " l^ing."

Now I^feigr and his son Oddr met, the latter fully ready to put to sea,
and trfeigr said that he had allowed self-doom to the confederates. Oddr
answered : '' Shame on thee for such a settlement, wretch that thou art T
Answered trfeigr : *' But all is not lost, kinsman ;" and then tells him the
whole matter as it had gone, and therewith all, that a wife had been pro-
mised to him. Then Oddr thanks him for his avail, confessing, that he
had prosecuted the suit far beyond whatever he had thought could be
possible, and promises that henceforth he shall never be in lack of money.
" Now shalt thou go," says tffeigr, " even as thou hast intended, but thy
bridals shall be at Melr within six weeks." After that father and son
parted in much love, and Oddr puts to sea, sailing with a wind at will
north to ThorgilsfjorSr, where there were some traders riding at anchor.
Now the wind fell, and they lay there for some nights. Oddr thought
that a fair wind was slow in coming about, so he went upon a high moun-
tain, and saw that wind blew another way out in the main. So he returned
to his ship of burden, and bade them move out of the firth. The Eastmen
mocked them, saying it would be a slow process for them to row all the way
to Norway. Oddr answered : " What do you know but that you may have
to wait for me all the time here ? " And as soon as they came outside the
firth, the wind stood fast and fair ; nor had they to shift a sail until they
came to Orkney, where Oddr bought both malt and corn, and having dwelt
there for a while, made the ship ready for sea again.

Now when he was ready, easterly winds blew up, and they sailed away.
They had a fair wind all the way, and coming back found the traders
lying there still. Thereafter Oddr sailed west by the land, and came to
MiiSfjorSr, having then been away for seven weeks. Now people pre-

228 Appendix.

pared for the bridals, whereat there was no lack of good provisions and
plentiful Crowds of people gathered thither, amongst others Gellir and
Egill and a host of other great folk. The bridab went on in a right ^dr
and lordly fashion, and people thought that not a better bridal feast had
they ever given in Iceland. And when the feast came to an end,
people were sent off with lordly gifts, the most bountifully bestowed being
those which fell to Gellifs share. Then said Gellir to Oddr : ^' I should
much wish that Egill were dealt well with, for he is worthy of it" '' Me-
seems," said Oddr, '' that my father has done well to him aheady." '' Do
thou it better still/* said Gellir; and so he rode away, and his people.
Next Egill rides away, and Oddr, seeing him off, thanks him for his
assistance, saying : " It is not in my power to do as well to thee, as thou
art worthy of; but yesterday I ordered sixty wethers and two oxen to be
driven south to Borg, where they will be awaiting thee when thou comest
home, and never shall I think that I have done enough for thee as long as
we both live." Now they part, Egill mightily pleased ; and they join
friendship, and so Egill goes home to Borg.

This same autumn Hermundr gathered a band together, and went out
to the Leet of Hvammr, being minded to go to Borg at the same time,
and to bum Egill in his house. And when they came out along ValafeU,
they heard something, as if a string of a stringed instrument had snapped
up in the mountain. Thereat Hermundr felt ill with a sting under the
armpit, so that they had to turn about in their journeying, and by degrees
the sickness grew heavier on him. But when they came up by Thor-
gantsta^ir, they had to lift him off his horse and to send for a priest to
Si^umdlL And when the priest came, Hermundr had already lost his
speech, but the priest remained with him. And once, when the priest
bent down over him, he heard his lips muttering : '' Two hundred in the
gorge, two hundred in the gorge;" then he died, and the end of him was
even such as we have now set forth.

Now Oddr sat at home in much lordliness and love of his wife. But
all this time nothing had been heard of tTspakr. Svala was married to
a man, who hight Mdr, and was the son of Hildir, and set up a house
at Svalastead. Bj^ was hight a brother of his, a half crazy fellow, but
right mighty of his hand. Bergth6r was called one, who dwelt at Bo^
varsh61ar ; he had summed up the case, when tlspakr was made guilty.
Now at Bo1Svarsh6iar, one evening, it so happened, when people sat round
the fires, that a man airived there, and, rapping at the door, bade the
good man come outside. The bonder soon was aware that the arrival
was none but tfspakr, and said that he was not minded to go outside.
I^spakr challenged him hard to come outside^ but nowhither did he move,
but forbade all his men to go out, and thus they parted. But in the
morning, when the women went to the byre, they found there nine cx>ws
wounded to death. This was bruited about far and wide. But again, as
time wore on, it so happened, that a man walked into the house at

Appendix. 229

Svalastead, and into the chamber in which Mix was sleeping ; this at an
early hour in the morning. The man stepped up to the bed, and stabbed
Mdr with a glave, so that it pierced the hollow of his body. The man was
trspakr himselfl

Just as he was turning about for the dOor, Bjdlfi sprang up, driving
into him a whittling knife. I^spakr went along to a stead called Boigar-
h611, and there gave out his manslaughter, whereupon he went away, and
nothing more was heard of him for a while. The slaughter of Mdr was
spoken of far and wide, and ill in all places. Then there happened
a startling thing, that five of the best stud horses belonging to Oddr were
found all dead, and the deed was saddled on tTspakr. Yet for a long
while still nothing was heard of him. But in the autumn, when people
went about mountains to gather up wethers, they came upon a cavern
within certain rocks, wherein they found a man dead, and beside him
standing a bowl full of blood, that was as black as pitch to look on. This
was trspakr, and people thought that the wound dealt him by Bjdlfi had
become his bane, but that he had come by his end from starvation as well ;
and that was the close of his life. It is not on record that any blood suit
followed the slaughter of Mdr, nor the killing of tlspakr.

Oddr dwelt at Melr to old age, and was accounted of the worthiest of
men ; and from him are descended the men of MiSfjorSr, Snorri Kilfson
among them, and many other great men. From the aforestated time,
there was the best love and most desirable kinship between Oddr and his
father. And thereby this stoiy comes to an end*

230 Appendix.

THE STORY OF HRAFNKELL, PREY'S PRIEST.

It was in the days of King Harold Fairhair that a man brought his ship
to Iceland into Brei^Sdal, his name being HallfreSr. Brei^dal is a country-
side down below that of Flj6tsdalr. On board his ship was his wife and
son, who was hight Hrafnkell, who was then fifteen winters old, a hopeful
man and a goodly. HallfreSr set up household. In the course of the
winter there died a servant-maid of foreign kin, whose name was
Amthnl'Sr ; hence the name of the place Arnthnifir-sta^ir. In the spring
HallfreSr moved his house northward over the heath, and set up a home
at a place called Geitdalr. One night he dreamt that there came a man
to him, and said : " There liest thou, HallfreSr, and rather unwarily ; flit thy
house away west across the Lagarflj6t, for there all thy good luck awaits
thee." Thereupon he awoke and flitted his belongings down valley across
Rang£, into the Tongue^ to a spot, which has since been called Hallfre^ar-
sta^ir^ and there he dwelt into a good old age. In breaking up from
Geitdalr he had lefl a goat and a buck behind, and the same day that
HallfreSr left, an earthslip struck the house, and there these two creatures
were lost Hence the name Geitdalr, which this place has borne ever
since.

Hrafnkell made it his wont to ride upon the heaths in the summer-
seasons. At this time Jokuldalr was all settled as high as the bridge.
Once Hrafnkell rode up along Flj6tsdalh^ra5 and saw that a certain void
valley stretched up beyond Jokuldalr, which seemed to him to be a better
settlement than other valleys which he had seen already. And when
he came home, he asked his father to share him out his part in the
property, saying, that he was minded to set up house in the valley.
This his father granted him, and in the valley he had found, he made
an abode for himself, which he called ABalbiSL Hrafnkell got him for
wife Oddbjorg, daughter of Skjaldiilfr, from Laxdrdalr, with whom he
begat two sons, the older hight Th6rir, the younger Asbjom. But when
Hrafnkell had hallowed for himself the land of ASalb61, he held a great
sacriflcial feast, and a great temple, too, he reared up there. Hrafnkell
loved no other god before Frey, and to him he made offerings of all the
best things he had, going half-shares. Hrafnkell settled the whole of
the valley, bestowing lands on other people, on condition of being their
chief; and thus he assumed priesthood over them. From this it came

Appendix, 23 1

to pass that his name was lengthened, and he was called FreysgoSL He
was a man of right unrnly ways, but a well-mannered man notwithstand-
ing. He asserted the authority of a priest over all the men of Jokuldalr.
Hrafnkell was meek and blithe towards his own people, but stern and
crossgrained towards those of Jokuldalr, who never got fair dealings with
him. He busied himself much with single combats, and for no man did
he pay a weregild, and one ever brought him to do boot for whatsoever
he might have done.

The country side of Fljdtsdalr is a right difficult one to traverse, stony
and sloughy. Yet father and son would be constantly riding to see each
other, for between them there was much fondness of love. Hallfre^r
thought the common way was too difficult of passing, so he sought for a
new road above the fells, which stand in the country-sides of Flj6tsdalr,
where he found a drier one, although a longer, which ever since has
been called the " gate " of HallfrelSr. This road is traversed only by those
who are well acquainted with the country-sides.

There was a man named Bjami, who dwelt at a stead called Langarhds,
in Hrafnkelsdalr. He was married, and had begotten sons with his wife, one
of whom was called Sdmr, the other Eyvindr, goodly men and promising ;
Eyvindr stayed at home with his father, but Simr was married^ and had his
abode on the northern side of the valley at a place called Leikskdlar, and
was right well oflf for live-stock. Sdmr was a turbulent fellow, and
skilled in law withal; but Eyvindr became a traveller, and went to
Norway, where he dwelt for the first winter ; from there he went abroad
into foreign lands, coming at last to a stay in Constantinople, where he was
right honourably received by the Greek king, and where, for a while, he
spent his time.

Of all his possessions there was one for which Hrafnkell had greater
fondness than any other. This was a horse of a roan colour, which he
called " Freymane." He gave unto his friend Frey the half of this horse,
and so great a love had he for it, that he made a solemn vow that he
would kill any one who should ride the horse without his leave.

A man was hight Thorbjom, brother of Bjami, who dwelt at a stead
in Hrafnkelsdalr, called H611, situated across the valley right against
Ai$alb61, on the eastern side. Thorbjorn was a man of scanty means,
but of many useless mouths. The eldest of his sons was called Einarr ;
he was a tall man and well-mannered withaL It so happened one spring
that Thorbjom said to Einarr that he had better try to secure some place
for himself; " for," said he, " I am in want of no more work than can be
done by the hands that are here already^ but thou wilt find it easy to
secure a situation, able and skilful as thou art It is not for any want of
love that I thus call upon thee to go away, for thou art to me the inost
useful of all my children ; but it is because of my small means and
poverty ; but my other children must grow up labourers, but as for thee,
thou wilt find it easier to get a place than they." Einarr answered : ** Too

i3 i Appendix.

late hast thou let me know of this, as now all places and situations, the
best of them at least, are already arranged for, and I deem it an unde-
sirable thing to have to accept only the worst." Now Einarr took his
horse and rode to A%alb<51, where Hrafnkell sat in his chamber, and re*
ceived him well and jojrfuHy. Einarr applied for a situation with Hraihkell,
and he answered : " Why askest so late for this ? otherwise I should have
taken thee the first of all men. Now I have secured all my servants,
except for that one business which, I fear, thou art not minded to under-
take." Einarr asked what it was. Hrafnkell answered, he had got no one
to take charge of his sheep, but said he was in great need of one. Einarr
said he did not mind what work he did, whether this or any other; but
said he would like to settle with him for cloth and board wages. " I'll
make a short bargain with thee," said Hrafnkell '^ Thy business shall
be to watch fifteen ewes at the mountain dairy, and gather and carry home
faggots for summer fuel On these terms thou shalt take service with me
for two ' half-years.' But a one thing I must give thee, as all my shepherds,
to understand : ' Freymane' goes grazing in the vallc^y.with his band of
mares; thou shalt take care of him winter and summer; but I warn thee
of one thing, namely, that thou never be on his back on any condition
whatever, for I am bound by a mighty vow to slay the man that ever
should have a ride on him. There are twelve mares with him ; whichever
one of these thou mayest want, night or day, is at your service. Do now as
I tell thee, and mind the old saw : ' No blame is borne by those who warn.'
Now thou knowest what I have said." Einarr said he trusted he was
under no such luckless spell as to ride on a horse which was forbidden,
least of all when there were other horses at his disposal

Now Einarr goes home for his clothes, and betakes himself to A%alb6l
Thereupon they brought the milking-stock to the mountain-daiiy up in
Hrafnkelsdalr, which was set up at a place called Grj<Stteigssel During
the summer all went in a fair way with Einarr, so that never a ewe was
missing up to mid-summer; but then, one night, it came to pass that nearly
thirty of them had strayed away. Einarr went all over the sheep-walks,
searching without finding any, and for nearly a week the sheep were
missing. One morning Einarr rose early, and, coming out, found that all
the fog from the south and the drizzle had lifted. And so he takes into
his hand a staff and a bridle^ and a riding-rug. Then he went on, passing
Grj6tteigs^ which ran above the dairy. On the shingly flats by the river
were lying about all the sheep that had been home in the evening before.
These he drove home towards the dairy, and then went in search of those
that were wanting. He now saw the stud-horses further afield on the
flats, and was minded to secure one of them to ride on, knowing that he
would cover ground more quickly by riding than by walking : and when he
came to the horses, he had to run about after them, they being now shy,
though never before they used to run away from any one — except " Frey-
mane " alone. He was as quiet as if stuck buried in the ground. Einarr,

Appendix. 233

seemg that the morning was passing off, thought that Hrafhkell surely
would never know if he rode upon the horse, and so he took it, put on it
the bridle, and the riding-rug on his back under himself, and rode up past
the gorge of Grjdta, and farther up towards the glaciers, then along the
"jokul,'' beneath whick Jokulsd runs, and then down along the river unto
the dairy of Reykir. He asked all shepherds at the sundry dairies if any
of them had set their eye upon the sheep, but no one professed to have
seen them. Einarr rode " Freyroane '' from the first streak of dawn until
middle eve, and the horse took him quickly over the ground and far, for it
was the best of horses. Then it came into Einarr's mind that it was time
already to drive home to the dairy the sheep which were still in safe
keeping, letting alone those that he could not find. So he rode to the
eastward over the mountain-necks into Hrafnkelsdalr. But as he came
down by Grjdtteigr, he heard the bleating of sheep along the river-gorge,
even where he had ridden close by before ; and turning thither, sees how
thirty ewes come running along towards him, even the very ones which
had been missing for a whole week already, and these, with the rest of the
ewes, he drove along home to the dairy. The horse was all foaming with
sweat, so that every hair on him was dripping ; bespattered he was all over
with mire, and mightily blown. Twelve times he rolled himself, and then
he set up a mighty neighing, and then set off at a swift pace down along
the beaten tracks. Einarr ran forthwith after him, endeavouring to over-
take him, and to lay hand on him and bring him back to the horses. But
now "Fremayne" was so shy, that Einarr could get nowhere- near him.
Thus the horse ran down all along the valley, never stopping until it came
home to AiSalbdL At the time Hrafnkell sat at table, and when the horse
came before the door it neighed aloud. Hrafnkell told one of the hand-
maidens who were serving at table, to go to the door, " for I heard the
neighing of a horse, and meseemed the neighing was like to that of ' Frey-
mayne.' " She went out to the door, and there beheld " Freymane " in a
most ungainly plight She told Hrafnkell that ^ Freymane " stood outside
the door most ill-favoured of look. *' What is the matter with the champion
that he should come home as at this time,'' says Hrafnkell ; '' sure that bodes
no good." Then he went out and saw " Freymane," and spoke to him : " I
am sorry to see thee in this kind of plight, my pet; however, thou hadst
all thy wits about thee in thus coming to let me know what is the matter;
due revenge shall be taken for this, and now thou mayest go back to thy
company." And forthwith "Freymane" walked up the valley again to
join the stud. In the evening Hrafnkell went to his bed as usual, and
slept through the night In the morning he had a horse brought home to
him, and ordered it to be saddled, and rode up to the dairy. He rode in
blue raiment : he had an axe in his hand, but no other weapons about him.
At that time Einarr had just driven the ewes into the pen, and lay on the
wall of the pen, casting up the number of the sheep ; but the women were
busy a-milking. They all greeted Hrafhkell, and he asked how they got

234 Appendix.

on. Einarr answeted : '^ I have had no good speed myself, for no less
than thirty ewes were missing for a week, though now I have found them
again." Hrafhkell said, he had no fault to find with things of that kind ; " Jt
has not happened so often as might have been expected, that thou hast lost
the ewes. But has not something worse befallen than that ? Didst thou
not have a ride on 'Freymane' yesterday?'' Einarr said he could not
gainsay that utterly. '* Why didst thou ride on this horse which was for-
bidden thee, while there were plenty of others on which thou art free to
ride ? Now this one trespass I should have forgiven thee, if I had not
used words of such earnest already. And yet thou hast manfully con-
fessed thy guilt." But by reason of the belief that those who fulfil their
vows never come to grief, he leaped off his horse, sprang upon Einarr,
and dealt him his death-blow. After that, having done the deed, he
rode home to A%alb61 and there told these tidings. He got him
another shepherd to take charge of the dairy. But he had Einarr's dead
body brought westward upon the terrace by the dairy, and there set
up a beacon beside his cairn; and it is called Einarr's beacon, where,
when the sun is right above it, they count mid-eve hour (six o'clock) at
the dairy.

The news of Einarr, his son's, death, was brought over to Thorbjom at
H611, and he was mightily grieved at the tidings. He now took his horse,
and rode over to A$alb61 to ask Hrafnkell to do boot for his son«
Hrafnkell said that he had slain many a man beside this one ; '' for thou
must know that I never pay weregild to any man, and yet people have to
rest content with things so done. Yet I allow it, that I think that this my
deed is rather of the worse kind among the manslaughters which I have
wrought hitherto ; thou, too, hast been a neighbour of mine for a long while,
and I have had a good liking for thee, and we have enjoyed one another's
favour ; and no small thing would have brought matters to an evil pass
between me and Einarr, if only he had not ridden this horse ; but now
I have to regret that I spoke too much ; and seldomer, indeed, should we
have to regret that which we say too little than that which we say too much,
and now I shall show that I consider this deed of mine a worse one than
other deeds that I have done, inasmuch as I will supply thy house with
dairy-produce during the summer, and with slaughtered meat when autumn
comes j and in the same way I will do to thee as long as thou art minded
to keep a house. Thy sons and daughters we shall fit out at my cost, and
so endow them, as to make their conditions desirable. And all that thou
knowest my house to contain, and of which thou mayest stand in need
in future, thou shalt let me know of, nor henceforth shalt thou be in want
of those things which may be requisite unto thee. Thou shalt keep house
as long as thou takest pleasure therein, but when thou art tired thereof, thou
shalt come to me, and I will take care of thee unto thy dying day. Let this
be our atonement ; and likely, it seems to me, that most people will say,
that this man was dearly paid for." " This offer I will not accept," says

Appendix. 235

Thorbjorn. " What then ?*' says HrafnkelL Then spake Thorbjom : " I
will, that we name an umpire between us." Answered Hrafnkell : '' Then
thou boldest thyself as good a man as I ; the peace between us is at an
end." Then Thorbjom rode away, and down along Hrafhkelsdalr. He
came to Langarhds, and met his brother Bjami, and told him the tidings,
asking him at the same time to lend him a hand in these matters. Bjami
answered, saying that Hrafnkell was his equal to deal with ; ^' for though we
have plenty of money to dispose of, we are not the men to plunge into a
strife with such a man ; and sooth, indeed, is the old saw ; ' Know one
thing, know thyself T He has made lawsuits difficult for many a one who
have been mightier men of their hands than we are ; and it seems to me
that thou hast been somewhat short of wits in refusing such a good ofifer,
and I will have nothing to do with this." Thorbjom overwhelmed his
brother with abuse, saying that there was in him the less of manhood,
the more he was to be depended upon. So he rode away, and the two
brothers parted in little love. He did not stop until he came down to
Leikskiku*, where he knocked at the door, and people answered the knock
and came out Thorbjdm asked Sdmr to come out and see him.
Sdmr greeted his kinsman well, and asked him to put up there. Thorbjom
answered it slowly somewhat Seeing that Thorbjom was downcast, Simr
asked him for tidings, and Thorbjom told him the slaughter of his son
Einarr. '^ That is no great tidings," said Simr, '^ if Hrafnkell slays a
man." Thorbjorn asks if Sdmr was minded to lend him any help : " for
such is the nature of the case, that though the man is nearest and dearest to
me, yet the blow has been dealt no way from malice." " Hast thou tried
to have any redress of Hrafnkell ?" said Sdmr. Thorbjom tpld all trath-
fully as to what had passed between him and Hrafnkell. *' Never before
did I know Hrafnkell to make such offer to any man, as those he has made
to thee," says Sdmr. " Now I will ride with thee up to AiSalbdl, and let us
come before Hrafnkell in a humble mind, and see if he will still hold to the
same offers; and I doubt not that he will behave honourably in the matter."
Says Thorbjom : " This is to be said, both that Hrafnkell will now refuse, and
that such is no more in my mind now than it was when I rode away from
there." Sdmr sa^s : " Heavy enough, I guess, will it be to strive withHrafhkell
in matters at law." Thorbjom answers : " That is why ye young men never
come to aught, that you flinch at all things, and I am minded to think
that no man has got such milksops for kinsmen as I have. It seems to
me that a man like you is putting himself in a right false position, being
skilled in law and eager for petty cases, but refusing to take up this case, a
great and urgent one. Thou shalt be widely reviled for this, as, indeed, thou
deservest, being known as the most boisterous man in our kin. And I
now see how the matter tums." Simr answered : " By how much art thou
the better off than before, even if I should take up the case, and we should
both be worsted together ? " Thorbjom answered : " It would be a great
relief to my mind, if thou shouldst undertake it, no matter how after that

236 Appendix,

it should turn out" Sdmr said : '' I am right unwilling to engage in this,
and it is only for the sake of kinship that I do it ; but thou must know,
that in thee I deem that I have no avail of any kind/' Then Simr
gave his hand, and took the case off Thorbjom's hand. Now Simr
took a horse, and rode up the valley unto a certain stead, where he
declared the manslaughter, and after that he gathered men against
Hrafnkell. Hrafnkell heard of this, and thought it a laughable affair
that Sdmr should have undertaken a blood-suit against him. And thus
the winter and the next summer pass away. When the days of the
summonses pass by, Simr rode away from home up to A'Salbdl, and
summoned Hrafnkell for the manslaughter of Einarr. After that he rode
down the valley, and called upon the goodmen to come to the " l^ing.''
Hrafnkell, too, sent messengers down along Jokuldalr and charged his
men to come; and thus from his own jurisdiction he brought together
seventy men. With this band he rode eastward over Flj6tsdalshdra%,
across it past the upper end of the water, then straight across the neck
unto Skri^udalr, and up along the same valley and south unto Oxarhei'Si
on the way to BerufjorSr and the straight " ring " road to SfSa. From
Fljotsdalr there are seventeen days' journey unto l*fngvellir. Now
when Hallfre'Sr had ridden away from the countiy-side, Sdmr gathered
men together, and most of those that he brought together, and who
formed his following, were only country tramps; unto these men Sdmr
gave both weapons and clothes and victuals. Sdmr struck another route
out of the valley. He first went north to the bridge and then over the
bridge, and thence unto MoSrudalshei^i, putting up at MoSrudalr for the
night. Thence they rode unto HerSirbrei^stunga, and so on above
BldfjoU, and thence into Krdksdalr, and so southward unto the Sand,
until they came down unto SaniSafell, whence unto l^ingvoll, where
Hrafnkell had not arrived as yet, the reason of his slower travelling
being the longer road he had to do. Sdmr tilts a booth for his men,
but nowhere near where the Eastfirth-men were wont to tilL Now
shortly after this HallfreSr arrived and tilted his booth as had been his
wont here before. He heard that Sdmr was at the " ting," and that he
found right laughable. The " l^ing" was a very crowded one, and at it
there were most of the lords of the land. Sdmr went to all the chieftains,
asking them for help and avail, but they all answered one way, saying each
that they had nothing good to requite Sdmr so as to join him in strife at
law against priest Hrafnkell and thus to hazard their honour. They also
say that most of those who ever had contentions at law with Hrafnkell had
fared one way ; that in all such cases as had men set up against him, he
had worsted them all Simr went home to his booth, and in a downcast
frame of mind ; the two kinsmen were misdoubting that their affairs would
come to such an utter downfall, as that they would only reap from it shame
and disgrace, and in so deep an anxiety were both of them fallen, that they
might have no enjo3rment either of food or sleep, because all the chieftains

Appendix. 237

refused all assistance to them, even those upon whose help they had
counted most

It so fell early one morning, that the old carl Thorbjom was awake ;
he roused Simr from his sleep and bade him stand up, '* for now it behoves
not to slumber." Sdmr stood up and put on his raiment They went
abroad, walking down to Oxard below the bridge, where they washed
themselves. Thorbjom spake to Sdmr, " It is my counsel now, that thou
cause our horses to be driven up, and that we get ready to return home,
for it is easy to see that here nothing is awaiting us but utter shame.'*
Sdmr answered : '' That is well enough, since thou wouldst hear of nothing
but striving with Hrafnkell, and didst not choose to accept offers that
many a man, who had lost a near kinsman, Would have been fain to take.
With hard reproaches thou didst t%g on my mind, doing the same to
others, who were not willing to enter the case with thee. But as for me
I shall never give in, until I deem that all hope is past of my ever being
able to bring things further about'' This came so close home to Thorb-
jom, that he wept Then they saw how, on the westem side of the river,
only a bit further down than where they were sitting, five men walk
together out of a certain booth. He who was at the head of them, and
walked abreast of them, was a tall man, not of a stout build to look at,
arrayed in a leaf-green kirtle, in his hand a sword ornamented ; a straight-
faced man he was, and mddy of hue, and of a goodly presence, light-
auburn of hair, which was fast growing hoary. This was a man easy to
know, as he had a light lock in his hair on the left side. Then Skmr
spake: ''Stand we up, and go we west across the river to meet these
men." Now they went down along the river, and the leader of those men
is the first to greet them, asking them who they were, to which they
answered as asked. Sdmr asked this man for his name ; he said he was
named Thorkell, and was the son of Thjostar. Sdmr asked where his
family was, and where he had got a home. The other said he was a West-
firther by kin and origin, and that his abode was in ThorskafjorSr.
Questioned Sdmr: "Art thou a man of a priesthood?" "Far from it,"
said the other. " Art thou a bonder then ? " said Sdmr. He said that was
not so. Sdmr asked : " What of a man art thou then ?" He answered :
" I am only a country tramp. I came out here last summer, having been
for seven winters abroad, having fared all the way to Constantinople,
being now a henchman of the King of the Greeks, and at this time
staying with my brother, whose name is Thorgeirr." " Is he a man of
a priesthood ? " said S^mr. Thorkell answered : " A man of a priesthood
he is indeed, both in ThorskafjorSr and wide about elsewhere in the West-
firths." "Is he here at the I^ing?" said Sdmx. "To be sure," said
Thorkell " How many men has he got with him ? " said Sdmr. " About
seventy men," said ThorkelL " Are there more of ye brothers T said
Sdmr. " A third one still," says Thorkell. " Who is he ? " says Siror.
"He is hight Thoraid^Jr," says Thorkell, "and dwells at Gar8ar on

238 Appendix,

AlptaneSy axkd is married to Thdrdfs, the daughter of Thdrdlfr Skalla-
grfmsson of Borg." "Art thou minded at all to bear us a hand?" says
Simr. " What is it you want ? " says Thorkell. " To be backed up by
the might of chieftains/' says Simr, '^ for we have affairs at law on hand
against Hrafnkell the priest, for the manslaughter of Einarr Thorbjamar-
son j and if thou shouldst back us up, we, as plaintiffs, are confident of
the case." Thorkell answered : " As I told you, I am not a man of
a priesthood." " Why art thou so stinted of thy share,* said Sdmr,
" being the son of a chieftain like the rest of thy brothers ?" Thorkell
answered : '^ I did not say that I was not possessed of a priesthood, but
I handselled to my brother Thorgeirr my rule of men before I went
abroad; and since my return I have not resumed it, because I deem it
well cared for, while he takes charge of it Go ye to meet him, and ask
him to look to you ; he is a lordly-minded man, and a noble-hearted, and
in every way of good conditions ; a young man too, and ambitious withaL
Such are the likeliest men to yield the assistance ye want" Sdmr says :
" We shall get nothing out of him unless thou backest up our suit as
well." Thorkell answers : " I will promise to be rather with than against
you, as it seems to me the necessity is urgent, that a suit should be
brought on for a close relative. Go ye now to the booth, and go ye into
the booth, now that all men are asleep ; ye will see, where there stands,
athwart the upper part of the floor, a couple of sleeping-bags, out of one of
which I have just arisen, and in the other of which there is resting still
Thorgeirr, my brother. Since he came to the ' ing' he has suffered
much from a suppurated foot, and has therefore slept little a-night, but
last night, the boil burst, and the core is out: since that he has been
asleep, and has stretched the foot from under the clothes out over the
foot-board for relief from over-heat Let the old man go first, and let him
go up the booth. It seems to me that he is a right decrepit old fellow,
both as to sight and as to age. Now, my man," says Thorkell, " when
thou comest up to the, sleeping-bag, take care to trip hard and
come flopping down upon the footboard, and catch in the fall at the toe
which is bandaged, and pull at it, and just see how he likes it" Sdmr
said : " No doubt that thou art a man of wholesome counsel to us, but
this seems to me hardly a wise thing to do." Thorkell answered : " One
of two things you must do — to take what I advise, or not to come to me
for a counsel at all." Sdmr spake, and said : " As he has counselled, so
the thing shall be done." Thorkell said that he would come on later, " for
I am waiting for my men." Now Simr and Thorbjom went away and
came into the booth, where all men were asleep ; they soon saw where
Thorgeirr was lying. The old carl Thorbjom went first, and in a stumbling
manner he walked. But when he came up to the sleeping-bag, then he
stumbled on to the footboard and clutched at the sore toe and pulled
hard at it, while Thorgeirr woke and jumped up in the sleeping-bag, and
asked who he was who was going on so headlong as to rush upon people's

Appendix. 239

sore feet. But Sdmr and his men had nothing to say for themselves ;
but in the same moment Thorkell sprang into the booth and said to
Thorgeirr his brother : " Be not so hasty and furious, kinsman, about this ;
it will do thee no harm, and people often do by chance things worse than
they would ; and to many a man it has happened to be unable to have his
eye on all things, when his mind is overloaded with great things. No
wonder, kinsman, that thou shouldst be so hurt in thy foot which has so
long been painful, and, indeed, that pain pinches thyself sharpest But
even so it may be, that no less painful to an old man is the death of his
son, for whom he can get no redress, being moreover a man pinched by
every kind of want No doubt he knows best his own pain, and it is not
to be wondered at that he should not be very heedfid of all things, in
whose mind mighty things are abiding." Thorgeirr answered : '' I did not
know that he was to hold me responsible for this, for I did not kill his son,
and he cannot therefore revenge this on me." " He nowise minded to be
avenged on thee," says Thorkell, " but he came to thee at a faster pace
than he could help, and paid for his dimness of sight in his eager hope of
finding some support in thee. And a noble deed it would be to lend one's
help to an old and needy man. This is to him a matter of necessity, not
of choice, seeing that it is his son, after whom he has to take up the suit
But now all the chieftains back out of all help to these men, and show
therein a great want of great-mindedness." Thorgeirr answered : '* Against
whom have these men the plaint to bring ? " Thorkell answered :
" Hrafnkell the priest has slain the son of Thorbjom, sackless. One deed
after another he works, never allowing redress to any one therefor."
Thorgeirr answered: "I shall, belike, fare the way of others, in not
finding that I have any such good deed to requite to these men, as that
I should go willingly into law struggles with Hrafnkell. For it seems
that every summer he deals with those who have got cases to contest
with him, so that most of thenrget little or no honour thereof in the end.
In this way I have seen them fare every one. This, I guess, must be the
cause why most men are so unwilling, whom necessity does not urge along."
Thorkell answered : '' It may be, if I were a chieftain, that I should fare
in the same way, and that I should deem it ill to have to strive with
Hrafnkell, but as I am, I look on that matter otherwise, for I should above
all things choose to deal with such a man before whom all men had come
to grief already ; and greatly should I deem that my honour had advanced,
or the honour of any chieftain, by Hrafhkell being brought into some
straits ; whereas, I should deem it undiminished if I fared no worse than
others, as the proverbs say, * Tis not my curse whafs common fate,' and
* nothing venture, nothing gain.' " " Now I see," says Thorgeirr, " how thy
mind stands in the matter ; thou wilt lend these men thy assistance. Now
I shall hand over to thee my priesthood and my rule of men, and have thou
that which I have had before, but after that we go even shares, and now
thou back up whomsoever thou choosest" Answered Thorkell: "It

240 Appendix.

seems to me that our priesthood will be best looked after by being^
longest in thy hands ; and I should like no one better to have it than thee,
for thou hast many things to make thee a man above all of us brothers,
whereas I have not made up my mind as to what I shall do with myself as
at this time. Thou knowest, kinsman, that I have meddled in few things
since I came to Iceland. I shall see what my counsels are held worth, for
now I have pleaded this cause all I can at present. Maybe that Thorkell
Leppr may come forward hereafter in such a manner as that his words
may be held of greater account" Thorgeirr answered : " I see now, kins-
man, how the matter stands, that thou art not pleased, which I cannot
bear to think of, so we will lend these men our assistance if it be thy will,
whatsoever end the affair may have." Thorkell answered : " Therefore I
asked that it is my pleasure that the request be granted." " What do these
men consider themselves able to do ? " says Thorgeirr, " so that thereby
the success of their case may be better insured?" "As I said before to-
day," said Simr, " we want the assistance of chieftains, but the pleading
of the case is in my hand." Thorgeirr said that it was then for him to
show what he was good for : " And now the thing to be done is to start
the suit in the most correct manner. But methinks it is Thorkell's will
that you come to meet him before judgment fall ; and then ye will have
something for your pertinacity — either some comfort, or otherwise a
humiliation still greater than before, and grief and heartburn. Now go
ye home and be merry, for if ye are to strive with Hrafnkell it behoves you
to bear yourselves well and straightly for a while. But let no man be told
that we have promised you any support" Now they went home to their
booth and bore themselves right merrily. People wondered much at this,
how they had so suddenly come to change their mind, seeing how down-
cast they were when they went away. And now they sit quietly until the
time when judgments were to be passed. Then Sdmr called together his
men and went to the Mount of Laws, where the court was set Then
Sdnu: came boldly forth to the court; calling witnesses forthwith, he
pleaded his cause in a manner good in law against Hrafnkell the priest,
without making mistakes and with a frank and fearless manner of pleading.
Then came up the sons of Thjdstar with a large following of men, all men
from the west country joining them, whereby it was seen how well be-
friended the sons of Thj6star were. Simr pleaded the cause unto judg-
ment, until Hrafnkell was called upon to defend, or then he who should
be there present who should come forward to keep up law defence for him,
according as might be good and right in law. Simr's pleading was
received with good cheer, and the question was put whether no one would
bring forward a lawful defence on behalf of Hrafnkell People rushed to
the booth of Hrafnkell and told him what was doing. He started quickly,
calling together his men, and went to the court, thinking that there would
be but a poor " defence of the coast," and thinking in his mind how he
should nmke small men loth to set up cases against him ; and was minded to

Appendix. 241

break up the court for Sdmr and to hustle him out of the case. This, how-
ever, was not to be done now ; there being already there such a crowd of
people that he could get nowhere near ; and so was himself hustled away
with great violence, even so that he could not hear the speaking of those
who pleaded against him, and therefore was deprived of means to bring
forward a lawful defence on his own behalf. But Simr pushed the suit to
the full extent of law, until Hrafnkell, at this very " I^ing," was made full
outlaw. Hrafnkell went forthwith to his booth and had his horses brought
up and rode away from the " I^ing " mightily ill-contented at the end of
these affairs, for such he had never before experienced. So he rode east,
over LyngdalsheiSi and further on to Si'Sa, and did not halt travelling until
he came to Hrafnkelsdalr, and settled in his home at A'SalbdL He
behaved as if nothing had happened. But S^mr remained behind at the
** i*ing," going about and bearing himself right struttingly. Many people
thought it well that the case should have come about in this way, and that
Hrafnkell should have to come down once in a way, calling now to mind
how many people he had dealt with unfairly before. Sdmr waited until
the " ^ing " broke up, and men got ready to return home. He thanked
the brothers well for their assistance, and Thorgeirr asked Sdmr, laughingly,
how he was pleased at the turn matters had taken? He signified his
pleasure thereat ; but Thorgeirr asked : " Deemest thou thyself now in any
better case than before ? " Simr said : '' Methinks that Hrafnkell has had
a right great shame of this, such as shall be long remembered, and I deem
it to be worth as much as a great lot of money." Thoigeirr said : '' A full
outlaw the man is not yet, as long as the act of distress has not been
executed, which must be done at his own home, not later than a fortnight
after ' Wapentake ' " (but it is called Wapentake when all men ride away
from the " I^ing "). " But I guess," said Thorgeirr, ** that Hrafnkell is
come home, and means to sit at A'Salb61, and I also hold likely that he
will have taken to himself thy rule over men. But thou, I guess, art
minded to ride home and to settle at thy house as best thou mayest, if
such be possible. I guess, too, that thou deemest thou hast so brought
about thy affairs as to declare him an outlaw, but I am minded to think
that he will overawe people in the same manner as before, excepting that,
as for thyself, thou wilt have to stoop even lower than ever." " ITiat I
never mind," said Sdmr. " Thou art a brave man," said Thorgeirr, " and
I think that my kinsman, Thorkell, is minded not to let it come to a poor
end with thee, having made up his mind to accompany thee until a settle-
ment of thy case with Hrafnkell be brought about, so that thoii mayest sit
at thy home in quiet And thou, too, wilt think that it is most due to us
now to give thee our support, since already we had the most to do in thy
affairs. Now for this once we shall accompany thee to the Eastfirths ; but
art thou acquainted with any road thither which is not a highroad?"
Sdmr said he would go back the same way he had come from the east,
and was now right glad at this offer. Thorgeirr selected the best men from

242 Appendix.

his bandy and charged forty of them to accompany him. Sdmr, likewise,
had forty men in his following, and the whole band was well fitted out,
both as to weapons and horses. So they rode all along the same way until
they came into Jokuldalr one night, as the fire of dawn was first lighting.
They passed over the bridge on the river in the very morning when the act
of distress was to be executed Then asked Thorgeirr how they could
best come there unawares; for this S^mr said he had a good advice.
And out of the road he turned and up to the mountain side, and so
along the neck, between Hrafnkelsdalr and Jokuldalr, until they came to
the outer spur of the mountain, beneath which stood the homestead of
ASalbdL There some grassy deans stretched up into the heath and a steep
slope stretched down into the valley, underneath which was the farmstead.
Then Sdmr got off his horse and said : *' Let our horses be loose and be
guarded by twenty men, while we, sixty together, rush upon the stead,
where, I guess, few people will be upon their feet as yet" Now they did
so, and there the deans are called horse-deans unto this day. They were
swiftly upon the farm. The time for rising was past, and yet the people
had not got up. They broke the door open by a beam and rushed in.
Hrafnkell lay in his bed, and him, together ^dth all his housecarls, those
who were able to bear weapons, they made prisoners ; but women and
children they drove all into one chamber. On the lawn there stood a
storehouse, between which and the hall there was laid a beam for drying
clothes on ; unto this storehouse they brought Hrafnkell and his men.
He made many offers for himself and his people ; but when that was not
heeded, he asked the life of his men to be spared, '^ for they have done
nothing to offend you ; but it is no shame to me to be killed ; and from
that I beg not to be excused ; only ill-treatment I pray to be spared, for
that is no honour to you." ThorkeU said : " We have heard, that hitherto
thou hast not let thyself be easily led by thy enemies, and it is now well
that thou shouldst take a lesson for it to-day." Then they took Hrafnkell
and his men, and tied their hands behind their back ; whereupon they broke
up the storehouse, and took down from pegs some ropes hanging therein ;
and next they took out their knives, making slits through their hough
sinews, drawing therethrough the ropes which then they slung over the
aforenamed beam, and there tied them up, eight together. Then said
Thorgeirr : '' Now thou hast been brought to such a plight, Hrafnkell, as
thou deservest^ unlikely as thou wouldst have deemed it, that thou shouldst
ever have received such a shame at any man's hands as now has come to
pass. Now which wilt thou do, Thorkell, sit here beside Hrafnkell and
watch them, or go outside the farmstead with Sdmr within the distance of
an arrow shot, and there execute the act of distress on some stony knoll
where there be neither field nor meadow." (This was to be done at the
time when the sun was in due south.) Thorkell answered : '' I will sit
there beside Hrafnkell, and thus have less to do." Then Thorgeirr and
S^mr executed the act of distress. Now after this they walked home and

Appendix. 243

took down Hrafnkell and his men, and set them down in a field ; and then
blood had already filled their eyes. Then said Thorgeirr to Sdmr that he
should now deal with Hrafidkell as he liked, " for meseems it is now a
matter of small difficulty to deal with him." Then answered S^mr : " Two
choices are set before thee, Hrafnkell ; one to be taken outside the stead,
together with those of thy men that I choose, and to be slaughtered ; but
whereas thou hast a great number of useless mouths to provide for, I
win allow thee to iDok thereto. So the second choice is, if thou wilt have
thy life, that thou betake thyself from ASalbdl with all thy folk and with
so much money only as I share to thee, which shall be mighty little ; but
I shall settle on thy property and have the rule of all thy men ; and to
neither shalt thou ever raise a claim, nor thy heirs, nor shalt thou ever live
nearer this place than somewhere to the east of Flj6tsdalshbra% \ and this
thou mayest handsel me if thou art ready to accept it" Hrafnkell
answered : ^' Many a man would think a swift death better than such hard
dealings, but, belike, I shall fare after the manner of many, ' that life be
chosen while choice there is \ * which I do, mostly because of my sons, for
theirs will be a scanty prospect if I die from them." Then Hrafnkell was
let loose and he handselled self-doom unto Sdmr. S^mr allowed Hrafnkell
so much of the wealth as he chose, which was a slight portion indeed.
His spear Hrafnkell retained, but no weapon besides ; and this very day
he betook himself from AiSalbdl together with all his folk. Then said
Thorkell to Simr : " I wonder at thy doing this, for no man will regret
more than thyself having given Hrafnkell his life." Sdmr said that could
not be helped now. Hrafnkell brought his household east over Fljdtsdals-
h^ra'S and right across FIj6tsdalr unto the eastern side of Lagarfljdt At
the bottom of that water stood a small stead, which was called Lokhylla.
This land Hrafnkell bought on credit, for his means went no further than
to cover the cost of household implements. People had much talk about
this, how HrafnkelFs masterfiilness had suddenly come down to nought ;
and many a man now recalls the ancient saw : " Short is the age of over-
boldness." This was a good woodland and large in extent, but the house
was a poor one, and therefore he bought the land at a low price. But
Hrafnkell spared no cost ; he felled the wood, which was large, and raised
there a lofty abode, which since has been called HrafnkelsstatSir, and has
always been accounted of as a good stead. During the first seasons
Hrafnkell lived there in battle with hard distress. He had much ado in
storing his home with fish. He went much about common labour while
the stead was being built. The first half-year he embarked on the winter
with one calf and one kid. But it turned well out for him, so that nearly
eveiything lived in the way of live stock, which was added to it ; and it
might be said that nearly every creature was with two heads. That same
summer there happened to be a large catch in Lagarfljdt, which brought
the householders of the country-side many a comfort, and this held on well
every summer. Simr set up his house at A'Salbdl after Hrafnkell, and set

K 2

244 Appendix.

up a great banquet there, and invited to him all those who formerly had
been HrafhkelFs retainers. S^mr offered to be the lord over them instead
of Hrafokell, and they accepted the offer, although they had various mis-
givings about the matter. The sons of Thjdstar counselled him to be
bounteous of his money, and helpful to his men, and a support to whom-
soever might be in want ; " And then they are not men if they do not fidth-
fully follow thee in whatsoever thou mayest stand in need o£ But this we
counsel thee, therefore, that we should like to see thee successful in all
things, for thou seemest to us to be a stalwart man« Now take care of thy-
self and be wary of thy ways : ' for evil foes 'tis hard to heed.' " The sons
of Thjdstar sent for " Freymane " and the stud ; said they would like to
see the beasts of which there were so many stories abroad. Then the
horses were brought home and they were viewed by the brothers. Thorgeirr
said : '' These horses seem to me to be serviceable to the household, and
it is my counsel that they be made to work all they can in the service of
man until they can live no longer by reason of old age ; but this horse
* Freymane' seems to me no better than other horses, nay, the wcMrse,
indeed, that he has brought many an evil thing about ; and I will not that
he be the cause of any more manslaughters than he has been already, so it
is fittest that he be received by him who owns him." Now they led the
horse down the field. Beside the river there stood a precipitous rock, and
below it there was a deep eddy in the river, and so they led the horse forth
unto the rock. The sons of Thj6star wound a certain cloth over the head
of the horse, tied a stone round his neck, and thereupon seized long poles
wherewith they thrust the horse over the precipice and destroyed him so.
Sithence this rock is called Freymane's Rock. Above it stands the
temple which Hrafnkell had had. Thorkell wished to come there, and
he let strip all the gods, and after that he set the temple on fire and
burnt there up everything together. After that the guests prepared to
leave, and Sdmr presented the brothers with things most precious, and they
bespoke a firm friendship between them, and thereupon parted the best of
friends. After this they rode west to the firths and arrived in ThorskafjorSr
in great honour. Sdmr settled Thorbjom in the house at Leikskilar,
where he was to keep house ; but the wife of Sdmr went to his house at
AiSalbdl where he farmed for a while. The news was brought east into
Flj6tsdabr, to Hrafnkell, that the sons of Thjdstar had destroyed " Frey-
mane " and burnt the temple. Then said Hrafnkell : '' I deem it a vain
thing to believe in the gods," and he vowed that henceforth he would
set his trust in them no more. And to this he kept ever afterwards, and
never made a sacrifice again. Now Hrafnkell sat at Hrafnkelssta^ir,
raking money together fast He became a much honoured man in the
country-side, and every one chose to sit and stand as it pleased him. At
that time there was a great going of ships from Norway to Iceland, and
people were taking up claims in the country as fast as might be during
Hrafnkeirs days. No one might settle freely in Hrafnkell's country-side

Appendix. 245

without his leave ; and all those who settled had to promise him their aid,
against which he promised his protection. Thus he brought under himself
all the land on the eastern side of Lagarfljdt. This jurisdiction soon
became much more thickly peopled than that which he had ruled over
before, stretching all the way up Skri'Sudal as well as up all along
Lagarfljdt Now his mind, too, had undergone a change ; he was much
better liked than heretofore ; he was still of the same temper as to helpful
husbandry and lordly household ways ; but now the man was much milder
and meeker in all things than ever before. He and Sdmr often met at
public gatherings, but never a word fell betwixt them as to their former
dealings. In this manner six winters passed away. Sdmr also was well
liked among his retainers, for he was gentle and quiet and ready to help,
and bore in mind always the counsel which those brothers had given him \
he, too, was a man of much splendour in outfit and raiment

It is stated that there came a certain ship into Rei^arfjorSr, the master
of which was Eyvindr Bjamason, who had been abroad for seven winters
together. Eyvindr had bettered himself greatly as to manners, and had
now become the briskest of men. Now he soon was told of the tidings
which had come to pass, and he made as if he took little heed thereof,
being a man of unmeddlesome ways. When Simr heard this he rode to
the ship, and a great joyful meeting there was between the brothers.
Sdmr asked him to come up west to his place, and Eyvindr accepted it,
and bade Sdmr ride home first, and afterwards send him horses for his
chattels. He hauled his ship aland, and made her snug. Now Simr did
as Eyvindr bade, and went home, and had horses sent down to meet
Eyvindr, and when he had made his chattels ready for the journey, he set
off unto Hrafhkelsdalr, riding up along ReiSarfjorSr. They were five in
company together, and a sixth there was, an attendant of Eyvindr, an
Icelander by kin, and a relative of his. This youth Eyvindr had redeemed
from poverty, and brought him now home in his own company, and had
done to him as to himself, which good deed of Eyvindr was loudly praised,
and the common talk was that few people could be found to match him.
Now they rode up along ThorsdalsheilSi, driving before them sixteen horses
loaded. They were there together, two of Simr's house-carls, and three
of the sailors ; all arrayed in vari-coloured clothes, and carrying glittering
shields. They rode across Skri^udalr, and across the neck, over the
country-side, and unto Flj6tsdalr, to a spot called Bulunyarvellir, and
thence unto the shingly flats of Gilsd — a river that flows into the Fljot
from the east, between Hallormssta^r and Hrafnkelsta'Sir : then they rode
up along Lagarfljdt, down below the home-field of HrafnkelsstaiSir, and
thus round the upper end of the water, crossing Jokulsd at the ford of
SkalL This was midway between the hour of rising and the hour of day-
meal (L e. nine o'clock a.m.). A certain woman was there by the water-
side washing her linen, and, seeing the men travelling, the handmaiden
gathers up her linen and rushes homeward. The linen she threw down

246 Appendix.

beside a certain pile of wood, runniDg into the house hersel£ At this
time Hrafnkell was not up as yet ; his chosen men lay about in the hall,
but the workmen had already gone each about his business, the time
being the hay-making season. Now when the maiden came in she took
up the wood, saying : '^ Sooth, indeed, are most of the old saws ; ' so one
grows craven as one grows old;' that honour mostly cometh to but little
which, beginning early, is allowed to drop into dishonour, the bearer
having no courage to wreak his right at any time, and such must be held
a great wonder in a man who, once upon a time, has had bravery to boast
of. Now the thing is changed ; those who grow up with their fathers,
and are deemed as of no worth against you, yet, when they grow up
in another country, they are deemed of the greatest worth in what-
soever place they show themselves, and come back again from abroad
and hold themselves better even than any chieftains. Now Ejrvindr
Bjamarson has just crossed the river at the ford of Skdli, riding with
a shield so fair that it beamed again; surely he is so much of a man
as to be worth taking in revenge/' These things the handmaiden said in
great eagerness of temper. Hrafnkell rose and answered her : '' May be
the words thou speakest are only too true ; not because that thou meanest
anything good thereby ; but it is well that thou have something for thy ado,
and go forthwith, as hard as thou canst run, south to ViSivellir, to the sons
of Hallsteinn, Sighvatr, and Snorri, and bid them at once come to me with
as many men as they have about them able to bear weapons." Another
handmaiden he sent down to HnSlfstadil to fetch the sons of Hr($lfr.
Thordr, and Halli, together with such men as might happen to be there
able-bodied. All these were the stoutest of men, and were skilled in all
manly parts. Hrafnkell also sent for his house-carls. And thus they were
at last eighteen together. They armed themselves trustily, and rode across
the river where the others had crossed it before. By this time Eyvindr
and his men had got upon the heath, and on he rode until he had crossed
the heath half-way, and had come to a spot called Bessagotur, where there
is a boggy mire like a slough to ride through, where the horses waded all
the way knee-deep, haunch-deep, or even belly-deep ; but underneath the
bottom was as hard as a frozen earth. On the western side of this bog
is a large lava, and, when they got upon the lava, the youth looked back
and said to Eyvindr : " Some men there be riding after us, no less than
eighteen in number, among whom there is one, a big man on his horse,
riding in blue raiment, and to me he seems to bear the Ukeness of Hrafn-
kell, the priest, although I have now not seen him for a long while."
Eyvindr answered : " What is that to us ? I know nothing whereby I need
fear the anger of Hrafnkell, having never done aught to offend him. No
doubt he has some errand into the next valley, desiring, may be, to go see
his friends." The youth answered: "My mind bodes me that he be
minded to meet thee." " I am not aware," says Eyvindr, " that aught has
happened between him and my brother Simr since their atonement" The

Appendix. 247

youth answered : " I wish thou wouldst ride away west to the dale, where
thou shalt be in safety ; but I know so much of Hrafnkell's temper, that he
will do nothing to us^ if he should miss thee ; for, if thou alone be safe,
then all things are well seen to \ then there ' be no bear to tug along,' and
that is well, whatsoever may become of us." £3rvindr said he felt no desire
to ride so hurriedly away, " for I know not who the men may be, and many
a man would find a matter good to laugh at if I should run away before it
came to any trial at all." Now they rode west over the lava, when they
came upon another mire called Oxemire, a grassy spot, with bogs which
are all but impassable. Hence old Hallfre^r strudc the higher tracks,
though they were longer. Now Eyvindr rode westward into the bog-
land, where the horses came by, plentifully weltering in the mire; and
they were much delayed because thereof. The others, riding loose,
quickly covered the ground, and Hrafnkell and his men rode their
way towards the bog-land. And just as Eyvindr had got over the
bogs, he saw that there was come Hrafnkell and both his sons. Now
Eyvindr's men bade him ride away, now all trammels are past, ^' And thou
wilt have time to reach AiSallxSl while the bog-land lies between thee and
HrafiikelL" Eyvindr answered ; " I mean not to fly away from any man
to whom I never did any harm." So now they rode upon the neck of the
land where some small hiUs rise above the ground. On this neck, spurring
off from the mountain, there was a certain hummock and a windswept place
surrounded by high banks. Up to this spot Eyvindr rode, and got there off
his horse and waited for them. Then Eyvindr said : " Now we shall soon
know their errand." After this they betook themselves up on to the
hummock, where they broke up some stones. Now Hrafnkell turned off
the road, making for the hummock. Without accosting Eyvindr with a
word, he set on them forthwith. Eyvindr defended himself well and man-
fully; but his attendant, not deeming himself the stoutest of men for
fighting, took his horse and rode west over the neck to ASalbdl, and told
S^mr what was going on. Sdmr bestirred himself quickly, gathering men
together, so that there was twenty of them in a band, and right well-
armed following he had. Now Simr rode eastward unto the heath, and to
the spot where the fight had stood, and saw how matters had come about
between them, and how Hrafnkell rode eastward again from his work ;
Eyvindr lying there fallen, and all his men. The first thing Sdmr did, was
to try if there still lingered life in the body of his brother, and carefully he
was searched ; but they had all lost their lives, five of them together. Of
Hrafiikeirs men, twelve had fallen, but six had been able to ride away.
Now Sdmr made a short stay here, and rode, together ^vith his men, in
pursuit of Hrafnkell, who rode away as fast as they could on their weary
horses. Then said Sdmr : " We shall be able to overtake them, they having
their horses jaded, ours being all fresh ; yet it will be a hard thing to reach
them, though, probably, if they cross the heath before, it will be at a plose
shave." At this time Hrafnkell had passed Oxemire again to the eastward.

248 Appendix,

Now both parties ride until Sdmr reaches the brow of the heath, and saw
that Hrafnkell had already got far down the slopes, and perceives that he
will be able to fly away into the country-side, and said : " Now here we
must return, for Hrafnkell will have no lack of men to help him." And so
Simr returns, at things thus done, and came back to the spot where Eyvindr
was lying, and set about throwing up a how over Eyvindr and his followers.
In these parts, even to this day, the hummock is called Evindr-hummock,
the mountains E)rvindr-hills, the valley Eyvindr-dale, Now Simr brought
all the chattels home to A^albdl ; and when he came home Simr sent
for his retainers to be there with him the next morning by the hour
of day-meal (9 o'clock a.m.), being minded to set off eastward over the
heath, " And let our journey now take its own turn." In the evening Sdmr
went to bed, and a goodly gathering of people there was there. Hrafnkell
rode home and told the tidings that had befallen. Having partaken of a
repast, he gathers to him men, even to the number of seventy, with which
gathering he rides west over the heath, and coming unawares upon
A'Salbdl, he took Sdmr in his bed, and had him brought out. Then
Hrafnkell spoke : *' Now thy conditions have come to such a pass, Sdmr, as
surely a short while ago thou wouldst not have believed, I having now in
my hand the power of thy life. Yet I shall not deal with thee in more
unmanly manner than thou didst to me. Now two conditions I put before
thee — one, to be slain ; the other, that I settle and arrange all things between
me and thee." Simr said that he would rather choose to live, though he
well knew that that condition would be hard enough. To that Hrafnkell
bade him be sure to make up his mind, *' For that is a requital I owe thee ; and
I should deal with thee better by half, if thou art worthy of it. Thou shalt be
off from ASalbdl, and betake thee to Leikskdlar, and there set up thy house ;
thou shalt take with thee all the wealth that belonged to £3rvindr, but from
hence thou shalt take with thee of money's worth, so much as thou didst bring
hither ; that only shalt thou bring away. I shall overtake again my priesthood,
and my house, and my property ; and great as I see the increase of my wealth
has grown, thou shalt enjoy nought thereof notwithstanding j for Eyvindr,
thy brother, no weregild shall be forthcoming, even for this reason, that
thou didst plead so provokingly after thy kinsman : for thou hast, indeed,
had plentiful weregild for Einarr, thy relation, in having enjoyed my rule and
my wealth for six years together ; but the slaying of Eyvindr and his men, I
value no more than the mutilation wrought on me and my men. Thou
didst drive me out of my country-side ; but I am content that thou abide at
Leikskilar ; and that will do for thee, if thou rush not into over-boldness,
that may bring about thy shame. My underling thou shalt remain while
we are both alive. Be thou sure of this, too, that things shall fare the worse
with thee, the more ill-dealings we have together." Now Sdmr went away
with his folk down to Leikskilar, and there set up his household. Now
Hrafnkell committed his household of AiSabdl to his chosen men ; and on
Thdrir, his soil, he settled his house at Hrafnkelssta^ir j but he himself had

Appendix, 249

the priesthood over all these country-sides, and his son Asbjorn, being
younger, remained with him.

Now S^mr sat at Leikskdlar this winter: he was few-spoken and
unmeddlesome, and many people found that he was right ill-content
with his lot But in the winter, when the days began to lengthen, S^r
rode in company with another man, having a train of three horses,
across the bridge, and thence onward across the heath of MolSrudalr;
thence again across Jokulsi-of-the-Ferry, to M^vatn; thence across the
Fljdtshei^i, and past Lj6savatn's Pass, never halting on his way until he
made Thorskafjordr, where a good cheer was made for him. At that
time Thorkell had just arrived from a journey abroad, having spent four
winters together in foreign lands. S^mr stayed there for a week, giving
himself some rest He now told them of all the dealings between him-
self and Hrafhkell, and charged the brothers to lend him now, as afore,
their aid and avail. This time Thorgeirr was chief spokesman on his
own and his brother's behalf; said he was settled afar; "The way
between us is a long way indeed, and before we left thee we thought we
had made matters snug enough for thee, so much so, that it would have
been an easy matter for thee to maintain thyself. But now things have
come to what I foretold thee, when thou gavest life to Hrafnkell, that
that would be the matter of thy sorest regret I urged thee to take
Hrafnkell's life, but thou wantedst to have thy way. Now it is easy to
see the disparity of wisdom there is between ye two : he allowing thee to
sit in peace all along, and only seized the chance of attack when he saw
his way to destroying him in whom he deemed there was a greater man
than in thyself. Now we may nowise allow thy lucklessness to be the
bringer-about of our ruin. Nor have we any such eager desire to plunge
into a strife with Hrafnkell again, as that we should want to risk our
honour in that matter again. But we are willing to offer thee to come
here with all thy relatives, and are ready to a£ford thee our protection,
shouldst thou find thy mind more at ease here, than in the neighbourhood
of Hrafnkell" Simr said he was not of a mind to close such a bargain ;
said he wanted to be home again, and bade them afford him relay-horses
which was granted him forthwith. The brothers wanted to give Simr good
gifts, but he would take none such ; rejoined only that they were men of
little hearts. Now Sdmr rode home unto his house of Leikskdlar, where
he lived unto old age, nor ever, as long as he lived, did he get a redress
against HrafnkelL But Hrafnkell sat at home and maintained his lordly
title, until he died in his bed His "how" is in Hrafnkelsdalr, down
below A^alb<$r. In his "how" there was laid down great wealth, all his
armour, and his good spear. His sons stepped into his rule; Thorir
dwelUng at HraihkelstaSir, and Asbjom at ASalbdl; both owning the
priesthood conjointly, and were deemed to be right mighty men of their
hands. And here the tale of Hrafiikell cometh to a close.

APPENDIX 11.

OUTFIT AND EXPENSES.

I PROPOSE, in the present chapter to give the reader (who may desire to
gather some infonnation as to the expense, and necessary preparations to
be made for a visit to Iceland) the benefit of my experience in these
matters. With regard to the expenses, they will, of course, depend on the
length of the visit and the number of the party ; the like remark will also
equally apply to the outfit ; but from the figures I shall give it will be an
easy matter to arrive at a pretty accurate estimate on both these subjects.
I would however here say that, for a journey across the island, the party
should not consist of more than three persons, as the number of horses
required to carry the provisions, tent, &c., would be so large, that great
difficulty would be experienced, in some districts, to find sufficient grass
for them.

I will begin by saying something about the means of communication
between this country and Iceland. The steamers of the United Steam-ship
Company of Copenhagen are advertised to leave Leith and arrive at
Reykjavik at dates as per annexed table.

All these steamers call in at the Faroe Islands, and at some places on
the coast of Iceland not mentioned here ; but full information on the subject
can be obtained by writing to the agents, Geo. V. Tumbull and Co., Leith.
The fares are 5/. for the single ticket, and 8/. for the return : this does not
include meals, for which an extra charge is made of 4s. 6d, per diem. Wine
and beer can be obtained on board at moderate prices. It was by this
line of steamers that I travelled, and am therefore able to say something of
them from personal experience. The captain and officers were most
obliging j the meals were all served in the Danish fashion ; the attendance
was very bad, and the stewards not over civil. The ship itself (and she will
run again this year) was not at all adapted to the requirements of passenger-
traffic ; she was too small, and her saloon was, on our homeward voyage,
uncomfortably crowded : this has, I believe, been represented to the Com-
pany, and they are about to put a new steamer on this route, which, accord-
ing to all accounts, will be a very comfortable vessel In deciding on the
steamer by which to leave Leitli, care should be taken to select the boat
that goes direct to Reykjavik, or much time will be wasted in cruising round
the island, and calling in at little places of no special interest, unless it
is the intention to visit the north, when it will be necessary to leave by the

Appendix.

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Appendix.

steamer which calls in at the intermediate ports; but on this subject I shall
have something to say further on.

The other steamers that run to Iceland belong to the ^ Leith and Iceland
Steam Shipping Company.^of Leith. Messrs. R. and O. Slimon, of Leith,
are the principal owners and agents. The following is the sailing bill for
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Appendix. 253

The fares are exactly the same as those charged in the Danish steamer,
but as I have never travelled by this line, I am unable to speak of the pas-
senger accommodation ; it is right, however, to say, that those who have
made the voyage by them were well satisfied, and spoke of the captain in
the highest terms. The only thing against this line that I am aware of is
the fact that they are engaged in transporting horses and sheep to Leith,
and this must be very disagreeable to the passengers, especially in rough
weather. Any one writing to Messrs. Slimon will be sure to receive
all the information they require, and will find the head of the firm to be a
most obliging gentleman.

HaA ing now given sufficient information, with regard to the steamers, to
enable any one desirous of doing so to decide as to which date will best
suit him to leave home, I will suppose that the trip has been decided on,
and the necessary preparations have to be made. In the event of making
such a journey as I have described in these pages, the direct steamer to
Reykjavik should be chosen, and the first thing to do, at least a month
before starting, is to address a letter to

Herra Gier Zoega,

Reykjavik,

Iceland,

informing him of the number of your party, giving him a short account of
the journey you wish to make, and stating the steamer by which he may
expect you. Request him to provide horses and guides, &c. If you intend
to purchase the horses, which I think is the better plan, you should send him
a remittance of, say 30/. on account He understands English well ; and
if he undertakes it, you will be saved a great deal of trouble and delay. It
would be well for those who can afford it to instruct him to provide good
saddle-horses. With regard to the pack-animals, nothing need be said, as
he understands the kind of horse best suited for that purpose. It might
also be well to ask him to secure quarters for you, in the event of your
having to pass a night at Reykjavik.

If it is intended to visit Iceland for shooting and fishing only, it is
probable that Akreyri will be made headquarters, in which case it will not
be necessary to purchase horses, as it will be better to hire them for the
short journey likely to be made, but it will be well to write to

Herra L. H. Jensen,

Jensen's Hotel,

Akreyri,

Iceland,

to keep rooms for you, and secure a guide and horses ; all letters may be
written in English. If it is intended to do much shooting, a couple of good
setters should be taken, as the birds lie very close ; and without dogs you
may travel for miles through the thick of them and never see one.

254 Appendix.

The next thing to consider is the outfit, and as regards this I cannot do
better than give a list of the articles we took, and which answered ad-
mirably \ they were provided by the advice of Mr. Charles G. Warnford
Lock, the audior of that excellent work * The Home of the Eddas,' than
whom no Englishman has had more experience of travelling in Iceland. It
is as follows :

A Tent lo ft. square, and 6 ft. 6 in. high, with a curtain i ft. deep, to
fold in at the bottom, or if necessary, to pile rocks on when the ground is too
hard to admit.of driving the tent pegs. The poles to be jointed, with rings
in them so that they can be tied together when packed ; the open end of
the tent to be fitted with eyelet-holes so that it can be laced up at night
It would be a good plan to have all the joints of the poles fitted like those
of a fishing-rod, metal to metal, as we frequently had some difficulty in
getting them apart after they had been swollen with the wet

A painted canvas sheet, 12ft. square, to cover the floor: it should be
this size so that the sides and end can be turned up to prevent the water
running into the tent, in the event of heavy rain or being camped in a
swampy place. This tent and ground-sheet are a load for one horse, and
will provide ample room for three persons, and the pack-boxes in which
their clothes are kept They were made by Edgington, of 2, Duke Street,
and cost 7/.

English saddles^ stuffed for horses with high withers and razor backs ;
the girths must be narrow, or girth sores will be the consequence; a
crupper is an absolute necessity, and the D through which it passes must
be strongly fixed. As a day will seldom pass without some showers,
the saddle should be fitted with D's to which the waterproofs can be
strapped. We found that strips of horse-hide, about | of an inch broad,
were much more convenient for this purpose than straps : these can be
procured at any saddler's. A hunting-whip^ with which to drive the spare,
and pack horses, is necessary ; the lash should be long and the handle not
more than 18 in. Spurs will also be useful, and must be large enough in
the jaws to fit large boots. The bridle should be a single snafHe, such as
would fit a pony of 14 hands.

Boots. For riding, have leather ones to reach above the knee, and take
care to have them large enough, especially about the instep, or it will be
next to impossible to get them off if at all wet ; they should be quite water-
tight as they will many times be under water when fording rivers. For
walking, a thick pair of shooting-boots, and as slippers, a pair of goloshes
with loose felt soles : these latter are necessary, as an ordinary pair of
slippers would be wet through immediately on leaving the tent Mind that
the boots get plenty of grease rubbed into them : the guides can procure
this at most of the farm houses.

Pack-saddles. It is usual to hire these, and the guides, for their own
sakes, will be sure to see that they are in good order before starting.

Pack-boxes. Much of the traveller's comfort depends on his being

Appendix, 255

provided with good pack-boxes in which to keep his clothes ; for the stores
the pack-boxes which he will be able to hire will be good enough, supposing
that his provisions, which would be damaged by water, are packed in strong,
wide-mouthed bottles, or water-tight tins. The boxes in which we kept our
clothes were made from instructions furnished by Mr. Charles G. Wamford
Lock, in his work, the * Home of the Eddas,* and which answered so
admirably, that I will give them here with some slight additions which we
found necessary. They were made of deal | of an inch thick, and were
22 in. long, 15 in. deep, and 10 in. wide; the joints wertf ploughed and
tongued, and the ends mortised. The lid was made of a single piece, and
sloped so as to let the rain run off. The whole was thoroughly painted
inside and out, and then the inside was lined with tin, which also received
a coat of paint A couple of stout battens were nailed on the bottom of the
box, outside, to keep it off the ground ; the hinges should be of the long
strap-hinge pattern, and the lid should be fastened by a staple fixed firmly
into the lower part, and passing through the lid, secured with a padlock*
We found that ordinary locks were of no service, as the horses, by running
against one another, put them all out of order, and obliged us to break open
the boxes to get at their contents.

Tools, A small axe, leather punch, tin openers, gimlet, bradawl, pliers,
candle lantern, strap hooks for tent to fasten round tent-pole, and a hammer,
and a small quantity of assorted French nails.

T?ie Compass and Map, As the great majority of tourists are but little
acquainted with the effect of magnetic variation on the compass needle, it
may, perhaps, be useful to give some practical rules for finding the true
bearing of any object with an ordinary needle compass in Iceland.

The magnetic variation in Iceland is very great, being as much as
43° W. in the extreme west of the island, and 34° W. on the east coast,
and as the error of the compass arising from this cause will vary by 9°,
or } of a point, according as it is taken on the east or west of the island,
I will give a rule for each locality : suppose then that a traveller was
overtaken by a snowstorm in some portion of the west of Iceland, and by
looking at a map, or from previous knowledge, he knew that some farm-
houses were to the north, and that a lava desert which he had just left was
to the south, he would have to turn his compass box until the north end of
the magnetic needle was over N. W. and then the north on the card would
I be pointing to true north, and as a consequence all the other points marked
on the card would also indicate true bearings. If the same thing happened
in the eastern part of the island, the north end of the magnetic needle would
have to be placed directly over N.W. by N., and then all the points marked
on the card would indicate true bearings. There can be no better place
from which to take a bearing than the saddle, as the rider is farther removed
from the influence of magnetic rocks than if he were on foot, but care must
be taken to remove all iron, especially gun barrels^ from the vicinity of the
compass.

256 Appettdix,

Should a compass of the ordinary card pattern be used, the following
rules must be followed In the west of Iceland, true north is represented
by N.E. on the compass, and in the east of Iceland by N.K by N.
Keeping these rules in mind, it will not, I trusty be a difficult matter for
any one to take true bearings, by whichever form of compass they may
chance to be provided with.

It will not perhaps be out of place to explain the importance of true
bearing, and this will easily be understood when we remember that all
maps are, or should be, constructed on the true meridian, and therefore all
the bearings on it of one place from another are true bluings, so that a
person who has lost his way would be unable, though furnished with a map
and compass, to walk in the direction of any place he wished to go to,
unless he understood taking a true bearing. Good compasses for travellers
can be obtained at Porter^s, 181, Strand, and of any first-class optician, but
the pattern I should strongly recommend is that adopted by the Royal
Geographical Society. The card is so constructed that its points are visible
when those of the ordinary form would be obscured by darkness. I need
hardly say that a map should always be carried by a traveller in Iceland,
and the map given in this volume has been specially constructed to meet
that necessity. It doubtless contains some errors, and these can hardly be
avoided until a more perfect sur\'ey of the island has been made, but it is
as nearly accurate as the present state of our geographical knowledge will
permit For a larger map the reader is referred to the 6lsen-Gunnlaugsson
4-sheet map of Iceland, and the Danish charts of the coast

Provisions. A party crossing the island, or remaining for any length of
time far from Reykjavik or Akreyri, will have, in a great measure, to depend
on their own resources ; it will therefore be well to take a sufficient stock.
It is true that, at nearly every farm, skyr, coffee, milk, and black bread can
be obtained, and, if a stay is made, some very good mutton, but the arrival
at a farm is generally unexpected, and the stay too short to admit of any
preparation being made to entertain strangers ; besides which, a little fore-
thought, in the commissariat department, makes one very independent as
to whether the night shall be spent at a farm, or at some place where there
is good grass for the horses ; I will therefore give a list of the kind of
provisions which we found best suited for our trip. The quantity of each
must depend on the number of the party and the district travelled in.

Biscuits in i lb. tins, soldered up.

Preserved meats in small tins.

Prepared soups, and tapioca or sago to thicken soup, in strong bottles
or tins.

Small tins of Liebig's extract of beef.

Preserved vegetables in tins. These are very necessary, as no vege-
tables can be procured in the country districts.

Tins of cocoa (mixed with milk and sugar, ready for use).

Dried herbs, in strong bottles, jams, sugar, pepper, salt, and tea.

Appendix. ^i^^j

Camp cooking apparatus^ from the Army and Navy Stores, Victoria
Street, and have the handle of the kettle riveted : this contains plates,
cups; knives, forks, &c., for two persons, and the whole fits into an iron
bucket ; it is much better than any form of spirit lamp that I have seen,
which is difficult to keep alight if the wind is blowing. But if one of these
is taken, have pure spirit for fuel, not methylated, as it ruins everything
eatable that it touches.

Clothes and bedding, A visit to Iceland offers a splendid opportunity
for wearing old clothes : indeed, new ones would very soon have much the
same appearance. Everything taken on the journey should be made of
some woollen material ; dl others can be left with Gier Zoega, at Reykjavik.
The following will be sufficient and as much as can be conveniently taken :
four pairs of warm socks, two flannel shirts, two undershirts, two hose, six
pocket-handkerchiefs^ two pairs of woollen gloves (be sure to take these).
An oilskin coat and sou'wester (to be procured at Leith : india-rubber will
not stand the wear); Porter's anti-mosquito veil (to be procured at
i8i Strand) ; a soft hat that you can sleep in, a small pillow, and a duffel
sleeping bag, which is much better than blankets, but if this is not taken
then two good blankets will be required, as the temperature, even in August,
will sometimes fall to 25° F., especially in elevated positions. An old
railway wrapper is also useful to lay on the top of the ground sheet.

In addition to the articles already mentioned it will be wise to take
some simple medicines and sticking-plaister, as the doctors are few and far
between, and from the rough nature of the country there is always a
possibility of an accident, when such articles as I mention will be useful :
a bottle of chlorodyne, glycerine. Cockle's pills, lint, and two or three
bandages. These will take up but little room and may prove very use-
ful. I should also recommend a good stock of Keating's insect powder,
and that it be fireely used whenever you sleep in a farm house. If there is
much camping out, a dozen of the " wheels," sold by* nearly all grocers for
lighting fires, would be very handy, as they will bum for ten minutes, and
two of them will boil a kettle ; this would be a very great convenience
where fuel is scarce, or when the willow stems have been saturated after
heavy rains; they might be distributed among the pack-boxes without
materially increasing the load of any one animal.

Routes. With regard to the route to be chosen, I do not think that I
can do better than recommend that over which we travelled, and which is
shown on the map by a red line ; I have, however, also given many others
on the map, and the traveller can make his choice of one that will take
him to any part of the island by simply referring to the map, as it has been
very carefully drawn, and represents the existing state of our knowledge of
the geography of Iceland : he will be able, with a pair of compasses and the
scale of miles, to decide as to the number of days it will take him to go from
any one place to another along any of the routes given. The rate of
travelling throughout the day, with the pack train, will seldom exceed 4i

258 Appendix.

miles an hour, and 35 miles is a fair day's journey. Of course, with saddle-
horses only, this rate and distance will be much exceeded, but no ad-
vantage is gained by running away from the pack train, as in the end you
will only have to wait until they come up. Two horses are required for each
rider and every load, and care should be taken to divide the da/s journey
equally between them ; it is also necessary with Icelandic horses to dismount
for about ten minutes every two hours ; without this is done the poor beasts
get very much distressed, and a few minutes* grazing seems to freshen them
up wonderfully. If a saddle-horse shows any signs of getting a sore back,
either let him run with the spare horses for a day or two, or else put a
light pack on him, as the pack-saddle will have a different bearing on his
back from the riding-saddle, and he will soon be fit to ride again : mean-
while you will have to be content to ride a rougher-paced animal.

With regard to the best season to visit Iceland I should say, by what I
have gathered from those who have had most experience of the climate,
that the beginning of July is certainly the best time, as the rivers will have
begun to fall, and the fords, which constitute the real dangers of Icelandic
travel, will be more easily passed than earlier in the year. The beginning
of September is the latest that any party should remain on the island with-
out they are prepared to risk spending a winter there.

Expenses. Our pack-horses cost from 4/. loj. to 5/. lox. each, and our
saddle-horses from 6/. to 12/. ; altogether our twenty-four horses cost
133/., and after we had done with them sold for 33/. ; they would no doubt
have brought a higher price if it had not been for the scarcity of hay ; the
result was, however, equivalent to our paying 2Z. i3J'. horse hire per diem,
which would be at the rate of is, ^d, for each horse for every day during
our journey. The guides were all paid alike, 5J. 6d, per diem, and they
had to find their own food. On the average we paid 12 kroner, equal to
a little more than 13^., at everyplace where we got our evening meal, slept,
and had breakfast ; tAis included a charge for the grazing of our horses.
At places where we only halted to get a meal the charge was a shilling
each, or more strictly speaking, a kroner. The usual payment made to a
guide for showing the ford of a river was one or two kroner ; this would
depend on the size and state of the river.

Before leaving Reykjavik, provide yourself with about 5/. worth of
Danish silver; the fixed exchange is 18 kroner to the pound sterling.

The expenses of such a visit as we made to Iceland may be taken at
100/. per month for each person ; this ought to cover everything, including
passage money out and home. I have now given all the information which
I think will be useful, and will conclude by expressing a hope that these
hints may be of service to those of my readers who propose, for the first
time, to visit Iceland.

( ^59 )

INDEX

AKREYRI

Akreyri (Corn-land), viii. x. 9, 60,
82, 89, 109, 112, 116, 117, ii8y 119,
120, 121, 124, 127, 141, 147, 253,
256

, date of steamer due to leave,

for Granton, 252

Assembly-room, 1 19

Church, 118

Court-house, 119, 120

Gaol, 119, 1 20

Hospital, 119

Public Library, 1 19

"Alexandra" Hotel (Reykjavik), 4
Alkali-waters in N.W. America, 27
Almannagji, 14, 16, 17, 18, 105, 163
Alof, the daughter of Skeggi of Yrjuni,

174
Alpine Gub, hints for the members of

the, 8
Alptanes, 238
Alumina, 24
"Aiding," the, vi. vii. 5, 6, 15, 16, 72,

208, 20Q, 212, 213, 216, 217, 226,

227, 236, 237, 238, 241
American clock, an, 154
" Anti-mosauito veils," Porter's, 77, 257
Arctic Circle, viii.

foxes, 141

ice, 117

Armannsfell, 162

Arm-chair (at Miklibser), 127

Army and Navy Stores, London, 256

Amarfell-it-mikla, 5 1

Amarfellsjokull, 44, 54, 55, 61

Amarstapi, 189, 190

Arnarvatnshci$i, 152, 199

Amgrfmr, 187

AmthruSr, 230

AmthnSSr-staSir, 230

Artificial heat, 147

As, 192, 194, 204

Asbjom " Veisugalti," 180, 181, 183,

184, 185, 186, 190, 200, 201, 202,203,

204, 230, 249 ^

BITRA.

Asgeirsd, 205

Askja, ix. 68, 78, 80, 81, 82, 83, 88, 90,

, 9h 92» 93, 94
Asmund Longhair, 206

Asmundson Grettir, 206

Asmdndur, the guide for the Spreng^-

sandr, 46, 47, 48, 49» 5^ 52, 54, 55,

61,62,63,65

, wife of, 47

Assembly-room, Akreyri, 1 19

Atti, elder brother of "Grettir the

Strong," 132
Aurora Borealis, 125, 140
Au?dlfr, 182, 183
Axe, 134, 176, 19(5, 209
At5alb61, 230, 231, 232, 233, 234, 235,

241, 242, 243, 244, 247, 248, 249

Bailiff, Minister of Miklibaer's, 125

Baker, Mount (N. America), 41

Bakki, 123

Bandages, 257

Bandamanna Sa^a, 205

Banquet, a weddmg, 202

BdrSr, 189

Basaltic cliffs, 93, 94

" Basket," the, 92

Battle between King Gamli and King

Hdkon the Good, 174
Beaver-skins, 176
Bedsteads, 15, 120, 154, 165, 198
Beer, 250
BerghylsfljaU, 23
Bergthdr, 228
BerufjorS, 236
Bessagotur, 246
Bible, the, 59
Big-Peter, 98

Big- Peter's son J<5n, 98, 100
BiUiard-room at Jensen's hotel, 120
l^irch-trees, dwarf, 116
Biscuits, 16 r, 256
Bishop of Iceland, 6
Bitra, 206

S 2

26o

Index.

bjXlfi.

Bjilfi, 228, 229

Bjarg, 131

Bjamarfell, 21, 23

Bjarnason Eyvindr, 245, 246, 247, 248

Bjarni, 187, 216, 231, 235

Blorn, 176

Black bread, 66, 67, 70, 78, 106, 1 14

BUfiall, •73

Blifjoll, 236

Blanda, 129, 137, 139

Blankets, 108, 1 14

Blisk6gahei%i, 217

Blesi, 21, 26, 28, 52

Bldndu<5s, dates of arrival of steamers

at, 252

in Laneidalr, 180, 184, 199

* Blue-bells of Scotland ' (played at

Miklibaer), 126
Boats, 60, 133, 134, 140, 254
Boer, 177
Bogs, 1 38, 142
BdlstatSahUtS, 190
Booths, 182, 183

Borg, 218, 219, 221, 226, 228, 238
BorgarfjorSr, 183, 184, 199, 219, 221
Borgarhdll, 229
Boroeyri, 206
, dates of arrival of steamers

at 2? 2
B6«var"biarki,"i76
BoSvarshdlar, 228
BrseSratdnga, 33
BreiSdal, 230
Brei'Ssvatn, 146
Bride, dress of, 1 26
Bridge, wooden, 118
Bridges, construction of new, 124
Bridle suited for Iceland pony, 254

paths, 123, 127, 129, 148

Brighton, hills resembling the downs

near, 36
British Columbia, 8
Broddi, 224
Brother, Grettir*s younger, 132, 133,

134, 135
Brijard (Bridge River), 20

Brunnar, 160
Bulunyarvellir, 245

" Buran " on the steppes of Russia, 86
Burfell, near tfngvalla Vatn, 17, 41, 44,
48, 49, 52

near M^vatn, 73, 105

" Butcher" fly (for salmon fishing), 145
"Gutter tdrdlfr," iii.

Cairns, 194, 198
California, 8, 107
" Camocns " SS., 165
Camp cooking apparatus, 256

DANISH.

Ca^on^ a, 30, 113

Cape Colony, 8

" Cart-wheel ** turning, 59, 61

Cascade, a beautiful, 147

Cemetery, Akreyri, 119

Chains stretched across the Gullfoss,
114

" Childers ** fly (for salmon fishing), 145

Chlorodyne, 257

Christian IV., King of Denmark, 100

Christianity, progress of, in Iceland, vi.

Christmas, 226

Eve, 134

Church at Miklibaer, 128

Churchyard at Hdls, 116

Classics, 121

Clergy of Iceland, the, 6

Climate of Iceland, fickleness of the, 123

Cloak, 182

, Ufeigr's, 213, 223

Clothes and bedding, hints on, 25 7

Cobs, 126

Cockle's pills, 257

Cocoa, tins of, 256

Cod-liver oil, shark oil sold as, 117

Coflin, mode of conveying, to a burial-
ground, 127

Commerell, Admiral Sir £., 100

Commissariat of RevkjahliS, 109

Compass and map, hints on the, 255

Constantinople, Eyvindr at, 231, 237

Constitution granted to Iceland, 6

Copenhagen, Supreme Court at, 6

Corn, 227

Corn- land (Akreyri), 119

Cornwall, area of VatnajSkull com-
pared with that of, ix.

Cotton grass (Eriophorum angusti-
folium), 28

Court of the King of Norway, 131

Court-house, Akreyri, 119, 120

Cows, 75, 202

Curlew, 28, 146

Customs at Leith, 172

Cygnets, 56

Dalfjall, 109

Dalsd, 53

Danes, the, viii. 5

Danish Charts of the coast of Iceland,
256

Exchequer, 124.

expedition under Prof. John-

strup, 90

Geographical Society, Trans-
actions of the, 90

Government, 68

mile, 94, 1 17

rule, vii.

Index.

261

DANISH.

Danish silver, bag containing, 165

necessity of taking, 258

Darwin, Prof, works of, 36
Dasent, 81
Dibris^ 135

*De Mensura Orbis Terrae,' refer-
ence to, i.
Demon, Great and Little, 48
Denmark, 176

, gunpowder mills of, 100

y King of, 5, 6

, Christian IV., King of, 100
, Frederick II., King of, 100
, salmon shipped to, 143

Dettifoss, 105, 106, 108
Dicuil, Irish monk, i. ii.
Dog-fish oil, 117
Dogs, Icelandic, 141, 162
Drdngey, 130, 132, 133, i34
Dream, Th6rtSr*s, 181, 192
Drunkenness, absence of, 128, 165
Duck shooting, 76
Dwarf birch-trees, 116

willow, 78, 150

Dyngjufjoll (Bower Mountains), 88,

89,90*92 ^ ,

Dyrefjord, dates of departure of

steamers from, 25 1

Earthquakes, 88, 89
Easter, 226
Eastfirth, 222, 241

men, 236

Eastman, 182, 188, 189, 227
Edgington, tent maker, London, 254
Edinburgh, 121
Egill, 210, 217, 218, 219, 220, 222, 223,

225, 226, 227, 228

y Bishop, 195

Egilsd, 194

Eider duck and down, 167, 168, 169,

170

down quilts, 73, 154

Eilffsvatn, 100, 104

Einarr,sonof Thorbjom, 187, 188, 189,

203, 216, 221, 231, 232, 233, 234, 236,

238, 248
Eirikr, Story of, 157, 158, 159
EiiSr, 176, 181, 182, 183, 184, 185, 187,

188,
204

197, 198, 199, 200, 201, 202,

Eleventh century, sagas written in the

beginning of the, 173
Elfin-Queen, 64
El(narh61mr, 191

Elliott Bros., Opticians, London, 24
Elli^aar, 13
Emigration, 8$
EngihlflS, 187, 188, 190, 191

FOSSA.

England, viii. 83, 118, 120, 127, 155,

156, 160, 166
English, 83, 87

farm-houses, 149

Government, 100

language, translations of sagas

into, 173
Eric, 204
Esja, 13
Etna, 41
Evandr, the guide, 13, 29, 32, 33, 54,

56,64,72, 107, no, 131, 136, 138, 151,

156, 157, 163, 171
Expenses of journey in Iceland, 258
EyjafjallajdkuU, ix. 3, 41, 44
EyjafjarSard, 116
EyjafjorSr, 116, 194, 206, 221
Eyjdlfr, brother of ThdrSr, 173, 175,

176, 177, 198, 199, 202
Eyri, 220

Eyrfksiakull, 152, 157
Eyvindar the Outlaw, 57, 60, 6 1

, wife of, 59, 60

Eyvindarkofaver, 56

Eyvindr, 192, 193, 195, 196, 197, 198,

201

Bjamason, 231, 245, 246, 247,

248

dale, 248
hills, 248
hummock, 248

Falcon, the, 113

Farde or Sheep Islands, i. ii. i

, steamers call at, 250

FaxafjfirSr, 13, 171

Ferry-boat, 137

Fiend, Grettir's fight with, 130, 132

Fire, 131, I33, I34
Firebrand, 131
Fish, 140, 186
Fishermen, 161, 205
Fishing, 73,74,77,78, 151
Fishing-line, 205
Flatatunga, 1949 195
Flatey, 168
FUes, 17, n

for salmon fishing, 144

FljdtheiiJi, 113

Fljdtsdalh^ra^, 230, 236, 243

Fljdtsdalr, 230, 231, 236, 244, 245

Fljdtshei^i, 249

Fldki's visit to Iceland, ii. iii.

Flosagjd, 16

Flot, 245

Fnjdski, 116

Foot, Grettir the Strong's, nearly cut

off, 134
Fossd, 48, 49

262

Index.

FOWL.

Fowl, wild, 151

Foxes, Arctic, 141

Freda, daughter of J6n of Vidrkaer,

86
Frederick II., King of Denmark, 100
French windows of a Sysselnian's

house, 147
Frey, 230
" Freymane," Hrafnkell's horse called,

231, 232, 233, 234, 244
Freymane's rock, 244
FreysgoSi, 231

Galtaloekr, 40, 41, 45

Gamli, King of Norway, 174, 175

Gaol of Akreyri, 119, 120

Gardening, 147

" Garth," the, 204

GarSar, 237

and Naddodr driven to Iceland,

11.
GarSshvammr, 192, 194
Gdsir in Eyjafj6rSr, 194, 203
Gautlond, 72, 78, 97
Geit, 159
Geitdalr, 230
Gcitlandsd, 156
Gellir ThdrSarson, 216, 220, 221, 222,

223, 224, 225, 227, 228

, daughters of, 221

' Geological Magazine,' 88

Geysir, Great, 10, 17, 21, 23, 24, 25, 26,

27, 28, 29, 30

, Little, 27

" Geysirs," the, 23

Gil, 135, 136, 137

Gilsi, 245

"Gji,** 16, 18, 105, 109

Glaciers, 151, 157, 160

Glaum, servant of " Grettir the Strong,"

132, 133, 134, 135
Glerd, 118

Gldmr, 182, 206

Glycerine, 257

* God save the Queen * played at

Miklibaer, 126
Golden Plover, 28, 107, 127, 146
Governor General (LandshofSingfi), 5,6
GolSafoss, 113
GoSalandsidkull, 44
" GoSarS'^man (priest), 176, 187, 207,

209, 210
Grain, 119, 147

Grass, 129, 136, 146, 150, 160, 162
Graves, 116, 119
Great Demon, 48
Geysir, 10, 17, 21, 23, 24, 25, 26,

27, 28, 29, 30
Greeks, King of the, 237

HEAT.

Greeks, king of the, Eyvindr received

by the, 231
Greenja^arstaSr, 112
Grettir Asmundson, 206
"Grettir the Strong," 130, 131, 132,

133, I34i 135
Grimsey Island, viii.

GrimstaiSir-naup, 105

Grfmstdngnahei^i, 151

Grfmstiingur, 143, 144, 147, 148, 149

Grindarholar, 189

Grfsafell, 129

Grist mill, 147

Grj6ti, 66, 233

Grj^dtteigr, 233

Grjdtteigssel, 232

Grund, 187

GuUfosB (Gold-force), 30, 31, 113

Gunnhildr, 175, i8c

, the sons o^ 174

Gunnlaug, 205

Gunpowder mills of Denmark, 100

GuiSnln, 182

Hafrarvatn, 163

Hafthdrr, 193

Hafursfjord, battle of, iv.

Hagaey, 9, 19, 46, 47, 63

Hagafjall, 44

Hdginga, North and South, 51

Hdkon ASalsteinsf6stri, 174

" the old," vii.

Halld<5r, father of Thorgeirr, 216

, kinsman of Skeggi, 200

HallfreiSarstaSir, 230

HallfreSr, 230, 231, 236, 247

Hallj^msson's (Jdnaa) Poems, 85

HaUi, 246

HaUormssta^Sr, 245

Hallr, 192, 221

Halls built by Th6r8r, 194, 195, 203

Hallsteinn, 246

Hils, 115

Churchyard, 1 16

, Resident Minister of, 116

Hamburg, 165
Haraldr, King, iv. v. 175
Harmonium, no, 126, 127
Harold " Fairhair," King, 230

Sigurss'Sen, King, 224

Haugr, 105

Haukadalr, 23

Hay, 136, 138, 146, 167

Haymakers, 66, 74, 129, 137, 146

Haymaking, 19, 69, 73, 76, 90, 129, 164,

245
Headgear of Bride, 1 26

Heartsease, 118

Heat, artificial, 147

Index.

263

HEBRIDES.

Hebrides, iv.

Hegranes, 197

Hekla, ix. 3, 10, 32, 40, 41, 43, 44, 45,

49, 52, 86, 91, 93, 103
Helga, iv.
HelluvaB, ^^^ 78
Helms, 175, 188
Henderson, Dr., 6, 103
Hengill, 17

Hdra^svotn (district waters), 128
Herbs, dried, 256
Herjdlfr, iii.
Hermundr, 216, 217, 219, 220, 223,

224, 225, 226, 228
HerSirbreiSstunga, 236
HerSubreiS, 8, 64, 94
Hildir, 228
Hjaltadalr, 188, 192
Hjaltalin, Dr. J6n, 121
Hjalti, the stout-hearted, 176, 187
Hjorleifr and Ingdlfi, the first settlers

in Iceland, iv.
Hlei^r, 176
HlilSarfjall, 105
Hli^arndmar, mud springs of, 100,

lOI

Hnausar, 142, 145, 146

Hofmannaflotr, 161

HofSahverfi, 203
. HofiSi, 203

H61ar, 195

H611, 231, 234

HoltasSir, 137

* Home of the Eddas, the,' 81, 254, 255

Home-spun, bride's dress made of, 127

Horgd, 121, 122

H6rgdrdalrhei^i, 194

Horses, Icelandic, 11, 93

H6r8a-Kdri, 173, 175, 180, 193, 201

Hospital, Akreyri, 119

Hotel ** Alexandra," Reykjavik, 4

^, Jensen's, Akreyri, 116, 119, 120

, Zoega s, proposed, 165

Hrafnagili in £yjaf}5rSr, 203

Hrafnagid, 18, 105

Hrafnkell, Frey's Priest, 230, 231, 232,
234, 235, 236, 237, 238, 239, 240, 241,
242, 243, 244, 245, 246, 247, 248, 249

Hrafnkelsdalr, 231, 232, 233, 235, 241,
242, 245

HrafnkelsstalSir, 243, 244, 245, 248,

249

Hrafntinnuhryggr (Obsidian Moun-
tain), 104

Hreppur, 5

Hrdddr, 175

Hrdlfr, 246

^ King (the Crow), 176

Hrdlfstadil, 246

j6n.

Hrolleifr, 187

Hrolleifsdair, 188

Hruni, 36, 37, 67

HnStafjorSr, 206, 209, 217

Hudson's Bay Company's Stores, N.

America, 118
Humboldt, 89
Humboldt's ' Kosmos,' 89
Hunafl<5i, 142
Hunting whip, 254
Husavik, dates of arrival of steamers

at, 252
Hvannfell, 73

Hvassafelli in NorSrdrdal, 182
"Hver,''23 *
Hvftd (White River), ix. 30, 33, 34,

35, 9i» 156
Hvftdrvellir, 182

Iceland moss, 53

Icelandic horsemen's mode of riding,

157

Poetry, 85

Trading Company's Establish-
ment, Akreyri, 117

Illuzi, 216

Indri^i, 187, 188, 189, 190, 191

Ingdlfi and Hjorleifr, the first settlers
in Iceland, iv.

Ireland, iv. viiL

Irish hermits living on the Far5e
Islands, i.

M.P., a man suited for an, 172

Irrigation, turf walls for, 136

isaQofS, iii.

, dates of departure of steamers

, from, 25 1

f shdll, 66

Jams, 256

JdmgerSr, 205

Jimskeggi, 216, 217, 221, 224, 227

Jensen, 116, 118

Jensen's hotel, Akreyri, 116, 119, 120,

253
Johanna Katrin, wife of Jdn of Vidr-

kaer, 8$, 86

"John Scott" fly, for salmon-fishing^

US
Johnstrup, Professor, 90, 95

Jokuldalr, 230, 331, 236, 242

Jokulsd, ix. 103, 233

J<5n, 182, 183, 184

, wife of, 184

, Big Peter's son, loi, 103, 104,

105, 106, 107, 108, 109

of Vidrkaer, 68, 82, 83, 86, 87,

89» 92, 93

-, wife of, 85, 86

264

Index.

JON'S.

"J6n'sSkar5,"89, 92

Jonson, the guide for Hekla, 40, 41,

44; 45
Jorundr, 105

J6runn, 187
" J. t.," 95

Kaldidalr (Cold Valley), 159

Kilfr, the farmer at KilfstaSir, 188,

192
KdlfstaSir, 188, 193
Kalmanstunga, 91, 148, 151, 153, 156
KarastaSr, 163
Kdtfstindar, 19
Katla, ix.
Kaupstadr, 3

Keating's insect powder, 99, 257
Kent, 93
KerlingafjoU, 51
Ketill, 191
King Ganili of Norway, 174, 175

Haraldr, 175

Harold " Fairhair," 230

Harold SigurSssen, 224

— ; Hr61fr (the Crow), 176

of the Greeks, 237

SigurSr "Slefa," 174, 175, 185,

204
Kings of Norway, 131, 132, 174, 175
Kisi, 53
KixSagil, 64, 65
Klyppr, Lord, 173, 174, 175
Knappoldiver, 52
Knf&, 53
Kolbeinsd, 188
Kolbeinsirds, 1^7
Kolbeinsdale, 193
Krik^, 73, 103
Krdksdalr, 236
Krdksmelar, 200

Lagarflj6t, 230, 243, 245
Lakes, shallow, 152
LandsjokuU, 157
Langafjall, 22
Lingalda, 50
Langarhus, 231, 235
Langidalr, 187, 188, 210, 217
LangjokuU, 44, 152
Languages, Modern, 121
Lardner, Works of, 36
Latin, 15
Laufi, 176
" Laug," 23
Laugarvatn, 18, 19

Lava, 43, 44» 9i» i49» 152, 161, 162

bed, new, 104, 105

Laxd (near Hmni), 37

(near Myvatn), 76, 77,97, 98, 1 10

" MEATSOME."

Lax£ (near Svfnavatn), 142, 14$
Laxdrdalr, 230
Leet, the, 208, 209

of Hvammr, 228

of Rangd, 227

Leifr, iv.

Leikskilar, 231, 235, 244, 248, 249

Leith, I, 2, 16 [, 164, 166, 171

and Iceland Steam Shipping

Company, 252

, steamers from, 250

, dates of departure of steamers

from, for Iceland, 251

-, dates of steamers due at, from

Iceland, 251
Leivhnukr, 109
Leppr, 240

Library (public), Akreyri, 1 19
Liebig's extract of beef, 70, 256
Lima, 89

Lfnakradalr, 187, 188
Lint, 257
Little Demon, 48

Geysir, 27

Ljdsavatn, 112, 113, 114, 115

Church, 115

Lj6savatn*s Pass, 249

Lock, Mr. Charles G. Wamford, 81,

254

, Mr. W. G., 89, 95, 98, 112, 145

Logberg (Law Rock), vii. 16, 91, 215,

223, 240
LokhyUa, 243
Loki, 86

London, return to, 172
Longdale, see Langidalr
Longhair Asmund, 206
Lundarbrekka, 67, 80, 82
, the farmer at, 67, 68, 69, 71,

73, 164

Church, 69

Lutheran, the State Church of Iceland,

6
" Luther's hymn," 107
LyngdalsheiSi, 241

Mackenzie, Sir George, 168

Magic, 134

Magnetic variation, 255

Magndsson, Mr. (Assistant Librarian,

Cambridge University), 64
Malt, 227
Map and Compass, hints on the, 255,

256
MAr, 228, 229
Mathematics, 121
Meats, preserved, 161, 256
" Meatsome," bowl called, 226

Index.

MELR.

Melr, 206, 209, 212, 216, 218, 219, 221,

227, 229
Merchants of Akreyri, 120
Mexican " cargadore," a, 63
Midges, 17, TJ

Miklibaer, 124, 128, 187, 190, 191, 195,
.197, 198, 202, 204

Church, 128

, Minister of, 125

Mikliloekr, 53

Milton's * Paradise Lost,' 123

Minni-Laxd (Little Salmon River), 36

Minnows, 140

Mist, mountain, 150

MiSdalr, 20

MiSfjarSar-Skeggi, 176, 177, 178, 181,

182, 183, 184, 185, 186, 187, 188,

197, 198, 199, 200, 201, 202, 203,

204
MiS^arSard, 131, 183
MiSyarSarnes, 187, 199
Mi^nomes, 189
MiSfjdrBr, 176, 177, 180, 181, 199, 203,

204, 205, 206, 227, 229
Mjdfidalr, 66
Modern languages taught at MoSru-

vellir College, 121
Money, 215, 220, 224, 227, 241
Monte Video, 76
Morgan, Mr. £. Delmar, ix. i, 24, 28,

44, 45, 48, 52, 54, 68, 78, 80, 99, 102,

107, no, 112, 145, 148, 150, 152, 153,

170
Mosfellshie%i, 14
Mountain mist, 1 50

trout, 124

Mountaineer, 8, 137

Mount Baker (North America), 41

MoSrudalr, 236, 249

Md^rudalsheiSi, 236

Mo^ruvellir Technical College, 121

Mdli, 112

Mulligatawny paste, 70

Muriate of soda, 24

Museum, Reykjavik, 167

Mussel-shells, 121

Myrdalsj6kull, 3

M^^ri, 67

Myvatn,ix. 80,82,88,97, 98; 0*Midgc-

watcr")j 100, 109, 249
M3fvatns Oraefi, 88, 91

Naddodr and GarSar driven to Ice*

land, ii.
Nags, 126
Ndmaijall, loi
Natural History, 121
Nets for salmon fishing, 145
New lava bed, i04, 105

OXNADALSHEiei.

New roads, I2(, 148

World, 85

* New York Tribune,* the, 8, 94

NikaUsagjd, 16

Norse-men, 15

Norse tales, 81

North American Indian lodges, 99

Cape, 117

■ Hdgdnga, 5 1

Northlanders' Court, 214, 215
Norway, viii. 84, 131, 132, 159, 174,

175,204,227,231,244

, Kings of, 131, 174

Norwegians, iii.

Norwegian settlers, the first, 167

NorSlfngaflj6t, 152

NorSrdrdalr, 124, 129, 194

Noses, sheep's, gnawed off by Arctic

foxes, 141

Obsidian quartz, 95

OdaSa-hraun (ill deed lava), 56, 65, 88,

91,92
Oddbjorg, wife of Hrafnkell, 230
Oddr, 205, 206, 207, 208, 209, 210, 21 1,

212, 213, 214, 215, 216, 217,218,219,

220, 221, 222, 223, 224, 227, 228,

229
CEfjord, dates of departure of steamers

from, 25 1
Ogmundr, 175

Ok, 157, 159

81fus, vi.
lof, the wife of ThormdSr, 187, 190,
194, 197, 198, 202
Olsen-Gunnlaugsson map of Iceland,

52, 256
Omelet, 109
Oregon, 107
Orkney Islands, iv. 227
Ormr, nephew of Skeggi, 184, 1S5, 186,
187, 188, 189, 190, 191, 192, 196, 198,
199, 201, 203
Orn, 193

Ornaments worn by bride, 127
6s, 176, 177, 180, 184, 185, 186, 187,
, 188, 198, 199, 200, 202

8sland, 191
slandshlfS, 196

Ossur, of Kerd, 187, 189, 190, 191, 192,
193, 194, 195, 196, 197, 198, 201

Outfit and expenses of a tour in Ice-
land, 250

Oxard, 14, 17, 237

OxarheitSi, 236

Oxemire, 247

Oxni, 122, 123

pxnadalr, 122, 203

OxnadalsheiSi, 123, 203

266

Index.

OOINN.

SARDINES.

OSinn, three ravens consecrated to

,by

Reykjavik, iv. viii. x. 3, 5, 6, 7, 12,

Fldki, ii.

13, 14, 18, 20, 87, 88, 94, 102, 117,
124, 137, 147, 149, 155, 163, 167, 168,

Pack-boxes suitable to the traveller in

197, 198, I99i 200, 201, 205, 233, 253,

Iceland, 254.

256, 2^8
Cathedral, 6

Pack-saddle, the, 258

Palmier >, Prof., 89

Xhfv^lntriril CcCdr^r- T

' Paradise Lost,' Milton*s, 123

Gaol, 7

Patriksfjord, dates of departure

steamers from, 251
Peat-fuel, 120

Peek, Sir H., 93

— — -, dates of arrived of steamers

Mr. Cuthbert E., i, 12, 27,

31,

at, from Leith, 251 ; from Granton,

32, 43, 44» 45, 50, 52, 67, 68, 72,

75,

252

77,99, 102, 113, 118, 127, 14s,

150,

, dates of steamers due to

154, 162, 170

leave, for Leith, 25 1 ; for Granton,

Pepper, 256

252

Pigs, absence of, 141

, Governor's residence, 7

Pliny, the younger, 89

ReySarbarmr, 18, 19

Plover, golden, 28

RevSarmdli, 217
Riding-boots, 125

Poems, Thorlakson's, 123

Polar bears, 118, 141

Roads, new, 124, 148

Ponds, I SI

Robin Hood, Eyvindar, the Icelandic,

" Popham " fly, 145

Population of Iceland, viii.

Routes, hints on the, for travellers in

Porter, Mr. H., optician, London, :

256

Iceland, 257, 258

Porter's " Anti-Mosquito veils,"

97,-

Royal Geographical Society, 88, 256

257

Portland cement, loi

the,' 89

Post station, 140

Potato-gardens, 118, 147

of the,' 89, 91

Pre-glacial period, 93

'Rule Britannia' (played at Mikli-

Preserved meats, 256

baer), 126
Rushes growing on shores of lakes.

Prestmost, 6c

152

Printing and bookbinding establish-

Riisks, 154

ment of Akreyri, 1 18

Russian vapour-bath, 95

Provisions necessary for a tour

Rye, 147

Iceland, 256

Ptarmigan, 91, 113

Sable-fur, 176

Pulpit of Ljdsavatn Church, 115

Saddles, suited for Iceland ponies, 2^4

Pumice, 94, 95

Saga, iii. 13, 130, 135, 173, 182, 187,

Quagmires, no, 142

191, 2j6
Sailors belonging to French men of

Quartermen, 218

war, 119

QuarU, 95

Salmon, 76

fishing, 142, 143, 144

RagnheiSr, 221

River, 76

Rakkaland in Mi^SfjorSr, 204

Salt, 256

Rau^ukambar, 49, 146

Simr, son of Bjami, 231, 235, 236, 237,

Reformation introduced, viii.

238, 239, 240, 241, 242, 243, 244, 245,

Reindeer, 103

246, 248, 249

Rei?arfj6r8r, 245

Sand, the, 236

Reports of American Societies, 12c

Sandabolnafjoll, 109

Reykir, 142, 176, 177, 178, 180, 185,

186

Sandafell, 50

Reyldahli«, 68, 97, 98, 99) 105,
108, 109

106,

Sandar, 176

San Francisco Market, 117

Reykjanes, 88

SanSafell, 236

Reykjanybba, 140

Sardines, small tin of, 161

Index.

267

SCANDINAVIAN.

SULPHUR.

Scandinavian colony in North America,

SkiilaskeiiS, 156

Skuli, 216, 246

Science, 121

Skdmstdngnahei^i, ^ i

Scotland, iv. 118, 165

" Skyr," 15, 23, 66, 67, 7I1 1^, 109, 1 14,

Scythes, 20, 83, 87

115, 13;, i45» 146

Sea trout, 145

Sl^ttahlf^, 188

Season for visiting Iceland, the best,

Slimson, Messrs. R. and 0., of Leith,

•258

252, 253

Seljadalr, 14, 163

Snorri, 246

Sellandafjall, 73

" Go«i,» vi. vii.

Settlers in Iceland, early, 173
Seydisfjord, dates of departure of

IGUfson, 229

steamers from, 25 1

Snow, 196

Shark fisheries, 160

Snuff (Evandr's), 13, 138, 171

oil factory, Akreyri, 1 17

Soda, 24

Sharks, 117, 161

Sofa at Miklibser, 127

Sheep, 122, 123, 134, 136, 148, 152,

*• Solar Physics,' Lockyer's, Danish edi-

210,211,227,232,233,234

tion of, 36

SdleyjarhofSi, 54

sieaung, 130, 132, 157

Shepherd, ThdrSr's, 186

Sdlheimar, 139, 142

Shetland Islands, ii. iv.

Song, Sprengisandr, 64, 107

Shields, 175, 188, 194, 197

Sorli the Strong, 203, 204

Sickness, 143

Soup, 153, IS4

/"^Ixaai^^J *»0

prepared, 256

■ ■-— icigneu, 15*'

Sideboard at Miklibser, 127

South Downs near Brighton, country

Sighvatr, 246

resembling, 36

SigrfSr, sister of ThdrSr, 173, 176, 180,

ndganga, 5 1

181, 182, 183, 184, 185, 201, 204
SigurSr, King, « Slefa,'' 174, I75» i^S*

Spear, 196, 200

^, Grettir's, 135

189,204

SilfrastatSir, 124

Spikes, iron, 132

Silica, 24

Spinning-wheels, 115

Silver, 214, 222, 227

Sprengisandr, 46, 47, 61, 62, 63, 65,

'' Silver doctor " fly, for salmon fishing.

oong, U4., iw/

.145

Spurs, 254

Smging, 171

Stack-yard, 196

SfSa, 236, 241

Steamers of the United Steamship

Sf^imidli, 228

Company of Copenhagen, 250 ^
Steinddr of Eyri, 220

SkagaQdrSr, 129, 187, 189, 190, 194,

195, 203

Steingrimr, 173, 175, 176, 198, 200,

Skagastrund, dates of arrival of steam-

202

ers at, 252

Steinsta^ir, 122, 123

Skdlafell, 13

Stockings, 139

Skali, 245

Stones, 134

Skapta, ix.

Stdrinupn 46

Stove at Pverd Church-farm, 1 10

SkarSshamrar, 182

Skeggbroddi, 216, 217, 222, 224, 227

Strands, the, 206

Skeggi, see MiSfjarSar-Skeggi

Strokkr (the churn), 25, 26, 28, 29, 39

Skinna-Bjom, 176

Strdtr, 153

SkfiSi, 205

Stykkisholm, dates of departure of

Skjaldillfr, 230

steamers from, 251

Skjdlfandafljdt, ix. 67, 80, 82, 83, 112,

Styrmir, 205, 212, 213, 215,216,217,

113

218, 219, 221, 223, 226

"Skafoungr" (sword), 176, 183, 197,

Suderoe, i

198, 201, 202

Sudrd, 91

SkorS, 205

Suear, 256
Sulphate of soda, 24

Skri$nisenni, 206

SkriSudalr, 236, 245

Sulphur mines, 100

268

Index.

SULPHUR.

Sulphur springs, 103

Surtshellir caves, 154, 155, 1^7, 158

Svala, 209, 212, 228

Svalastcad, 228, 229

Svartd, 67, 127, 136

Svartddalr, 135

Svartdkot, 90, 91

Svartar-vatn ^Black Lake), 90

Svfnadair, 100

Svfna Mountain, 140

Svfnavatn (Swine's Lake), 140, 142

SviSgrfmr, 192, 195

SviSgrfmsholar, i'>2, 196

SvolustaSir, 209, 210, 211, 212

Swanip, grassy, near S61hcimar, 142

Swans, wild, 53, 54, 129

Swim, Grettir*s four-mile, 133

Swords, 175, 182, 194, 198

Sword " Sicofnungr," the, 176, 183,

197* 19S) 201, 202
Syslumenn (sheriffs), 5
Syslur (counties), 5
Sysselman (magistrate), 121
, residence of a, 1 46

Tacitus, Cornelius, 89

Tapioca, 256

Tarpaulin of tent, 1 5 1

Tea, 106, 150, 256

Tent, 151, 182

suited for the traveller in Ice-
land, 254

Thief, " Grettir the Strong " a, 130

Thjdstar, 240

, sons of, 244

Thdrarinn, the wise, 209, 212, 213, 215,
216, 217, 218, 219, 223, 224, 226

Thorbjorn, brother of Bjarni, 132, 134,
13^1 231, 234, 235, 236, 237, 238,

239
, the " Paltry," 199, 200

, the " Puny," 199, 200

Th6rdfs, 206, 238

Thordr, 216, 246

Thorfinnr, 183

ThorgantstaSir, 228

Thorgeirr HdUdornson, 216, 217, 224,

226, 227, 237, 238, 239, 240, 241,

242, 243, 244, 249
ThorgenSr, 205
Thorgils, 203
ThorgilsfjorSr, 227
Thorgrfmr, 189, 194, 195

Thdrhallr, 190? '9'> I92| I93» >94» I95»

196, 197
Thdrir, 230, 248

(the Rich), 182

ThorkafjorSr, 237
Thorkcll, of Sandar, 176

" VALDEMAR."

Thorkcil son of Thj6star, 237, 238,

239,240,241,243,249
Thorkelsson, Jdn and Johanna, 86
Thorlakson, Sira J<5n, 121
Thomid^r, 187, 237
Thoroddr, vi.

Thoroddsen, Prof. Thorvaldr, 88
Thdrdlfr Skallagrimsson of Borg, 238
ThorsdalsheiiSi, 245
Thorshavn, i, 3, 171
, dates of departure cf steamers

from, 251
ThorskafjdrJSr, 237, 244, 249
Thorvaldr, 187, 188, 189, 190
Thorwaldsen, 7
ThorSr (the elder), 173, 174
ThorSr Hre«a (The Terror), 173, I74»

I75» 176, 177, 178, I79i 180, 182,

183, 184, 185, 186, 187, 188, 189,
. 190, 191, 192, 193, 194, i95» '9^>

I97> 198, I99> 200, 201, 202, 203,

204
Thule Island referred to by Dicuil, i.
Time-table of steamers between Gran-
ton and Iceland, 252
of steamers between Leith and

Iceland, 251
Tinder-boxes, 221
Tindfjalla-j5ku1I, 41, 44
Tombstones, 116, 119
Tools necessary for the traveller in

Iceland, 254
Torfasta^ir, 177, 200
Transit Theodolite, 6 in., 78, 79
Trollad^ngjur, 88
Trousers, 139
Trout, 129, 139, 140, 142, 145, 151,

163

, sea, 145

fishmg, 143 .

Tumuli, hill resembling gigantic, 146

",Tun " (home meadow), 23

Tilngnad, 50, 56

Tungnafellsjokull, 51, 61, 63

TiSngufljdt, 21, 22, 30

Turf walls, 136

TumbuU, Geo. V., and Co., Leith,

250
Tvero, i

Ufeigr, father of Oddr, 205, 213, 214,

215, 216, 217, 218, 219, 220, 221, 222,

223, 224
Uplands, the, 175
Uspakr, 206, 207, 208, 209, 210, 211,

212, 214, 215, 228, 229
Valafell, 228
" Valdemar," Danish mail steamer, i,

4, 164, 166, 170, 171

Index.

269

" VALDEMAR."

" Valdemar," Captain of the steamer, 2,

171
Vali, 205, 206, 207, 208, 210, 211, 212,

213,214,215
Vallholt, 128
ValSjdfr, 175
Vancouver's Island, 75
Vatnajokull, ix, 50, 63, 83, 89
Vatnsdalr, 147
Vatnsdalsd, 146
Vatnsdalsfjall, 142
Vatnskar©, 129, 136, 188, 189, 197
Vatnsness, 205
VaSlaheiSi, 116
Vegetables, preserved, 256
Vegetation, 140, 160, 161
Vespers, 222

Vestmann's Islands, 3, 44, 176
Vestri Rdngd, 41, 42, 44, 45
Vesuvius, Mount, 89
VfSivellir, 246
Vidrkaer, 83
Vindbelgjarfjall, 73, 98
Virgil, 36
Vi«ey, 168
Vi^idalr, 199, 209
Vf^Sim^ri, 129
Vi^vflc, 192
Volcanic action, ix.
— — - agency, 146
Vdt$la})ing, 224

Waltonian, 82

"Wapentake,** 241

Warlock, Mr., 171

Waterfall on the ascent of VatnskarB,

129
Waterfalls, 146
Waterman (acting), 140
Watts, Mr., 89
Weapons, 180, 186, 187, 188, 196, 201,

242, 246
Wedding at Miklibser, 124
* Weekly Detroit Free Press,' the, 8
Wheeled traffic, 148, 149
" Wheels " for lighting fires, 257

tVERA.

White bears, 141

White River in BorgarfjorSr, 181, 199
Whiteley's establishment (London), 1 54
Whortleberry bushes, 10 r, 112
Wild duck, 61

fowl, 109, 151

swans, 129

Willow, dwarf, 150
Wine, 250
Witch, 134
Wolves, 181, 192, 225
Wood carving, 115

, log of, 134

Wooden bridge, 118

Yule, 226

feast, 192

tide, 195, 197

Ziggi (the guide), 13, 32, 41, 43, 61,

131, 137, 156, 163
Zinc roof of a Sysselman's house, 147
Zoega, Gier,4,5, 8,9, 11, 155, 164, 165,

166, 170,253, 257

Zoega, Poroa (the guide), 12, 22, 29,

30, 32, 41, 47, 57, 58, 59, 66, 71, 72,

74, 76, 82, 99, 104, 107, 108, 109, 112,

113, 114, 125, 126, 130, 131, 137, 138,

140, 143, 144, i5o» 153, i55» 156, IS7,
159, 160, 161, 163, 164, 165

"ting," the, 208, 209, 212, 213, 216,
217, 226, 227, 236, 237, 238, 241

r(ngvalla-vatn, ix« 13, 14, 16, 16 r,

, 183

Pfngvellir, 15, 21, 43, 90, 105, 156, 161,
163, 236

road, 12

PingvSll, 236

i^jorsd, ix. 37,40, 46, 47, 48, 50, 51, 54,

,55.56,61,91

Pjdrsirholt, 37, 30, 40, 45

|<5rdlfr (" Butter Pdrdlfr 'O, iii.

Pverd in SkagafjorSr, 109, no, 127,
190, 191, 192, 194, 195, 203

Church, 1 10

THE END.

LONDON :
PRINTED BY WILLIAM CLOWES AND SONS. LIMTTED,

91 AMPORD STKBKT AND CHARING CROSS.

Edwf Wencr,F.H.G.S ..JUbSLLwiv Square,

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